The Hunted
by Tonilove
Summary: Bonnie, Jeremy & crew get more than they bargained for when they set out to find werewolf Tyler. They encounter challenges along the way in the form of old and new enemies. Sequel to I Feel Your Pain.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

Here is the first chapter of the latest installment of my Vampire Diaries series entitled The Hunted! It is a sequel to my story I Feel Your Pain. That story received such a positive reception that I had to keep going! I posted a note at the end of I Feel Your Pain so readers will know this story is up.

For new readers, you'll probably want to read I Feel Your Pain first. Otherwise, certain things in this story just won't make sense to you. I am afraid I am not a skilled enough writer to make this story stand on its own.

Alright everyone – strap in! You are at the beginning of a story that you will hopefully find romantic, suspenseful, action-packed and entertaining!

As always read, review and of course enjoy!

**Chapter 1**

"Oh man!" Jeremy exclaimed. He turned his head away from the gruesome scene on the television. "Did you see that, Bonnie?" he animatedly asked.

He was referencing a scene in the new A Nightmare on Elm Street movie they were watching together. Originally they planned to go bowling, but when he came to pick her up she asked if he'd mind staying in. She was tired and didn't feel like going out. He hadn't minded at all. His only goal was to spend time with her. He didn't care if they did that publicly bowling or privately at her house.

She suggested they order a pizza and watch a movie. Jeremy agreed. He didn't care what they did as long as they did it together. Bonnie took care of ordering the food and while Jeremy selected a film. He wasn't surprised to find A Nightmare on Elm Street as part of their Blue Ray collection. For some strange reason Dr. Bennett, Bonnie's father, had a thing for horror movies – the gorier the better.

The two chit chatted about nothing while waiting for the pizza to arrive. Once it did, they ate, dimmed the lights, settled on the living room sofa with a blanket, and started the movie. Jeremy specifically picked a horror movie because he knew it would provide the most cuddle opportunities with Bonnie. She did not have her father's penchant for horror movies.

He wasn't disappointed. Bonnie spent the first part of the movie with her head in his shoulder avoiding the TV screen. The two stayed snuggled close to each other until Jeremy told her a scary part was over and Bonnie turned to the screen just in time to see Freddy decapitate an unsuspecting blond in her kitchen.

Bonnie screamed and jumped up from the couch in terror. Jeremy, laughing, stood as well and attempted to console her. She was having none of it. She took the blanket and moved to the opposite end of the sofa away from Jeremy. He knew she wasn't too mad, however. Once he sat back down, she draped her legs across his lap and he absently rubbed them.

Forty minutes had past since then. Jeremy looked over at Bonnie, curious about why she didn't respond to him. He called her name again and realized she was fast asleep.

_'She must have been really tired to fall asleep during this movie.'_ Jeremy thought. _'I'll let her sleep. I'll finish the movie and then head home.' _he decided.

He patted her knee gently and then returned his focus to the movie.

XOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie was back in the Wilson Height's Forrest. She looked around and wondered how she got here. She turned to her right and saw the metal platform and shuddered. It was there that Oliver so nearly drained all of her life from her in his megalomaniacal attempt to steal her powers. It was on that platform that using her awesome abilities, Oliver transformed both Tyler and his father into werewolves and then using Bonnie's powers lifted the werewolf curse off of the Lockwood male and directly on to Tyler. It was here that Tyler lost his humanity and became a wolf full time. It was here that Richard Lockwood lost his life as lupine Tyler savagely mauled him to save Bonnie's life. So much had happened here, so many bad things, that Bonnie couldn't stand the sight of this place.

Bonnie shuddered again. Instantly she knew she wasn't alone. She hadn't seen anyone, but she felt a presence.

"Hello?" tentatively she called out. "Is there anyone here?"

"It's your fault!" a voice cried creepily from the forest. Bonnie looked in the direction the sound was coming from and could see "You let him kill me."

She screamed as Mayor Richard Lockwood materialized on the platform and began to lurch toward her from the platform. His left leg was broken and bent in the wrong direction. His abdomen was ripped open and his intestines hung out.

"My son killed me because of you!" The mayor called with his ragged voice. "You killed me!"

"No!" Bonnie objected shaking her head. "Oliver did this."

"With your power!" Richard declared. "You were supposed to stop him! You were supposed to save me!"

"I tried!" Bonnie said with tears in her eyes. "I did my best! He almost killed me!"

"But he _did_ kill me!" Richard said. "You saved yourself instead of saving me or my son!"

"I knew you killed Tyler!" Carol Lockwood said, materializing next to her dead husband. "You bitch!"

"I didn't kill Tyler!" Bonnie asserted. "He's not dead!"

"No, but he's a wolf!" Richard said.

"You destroyed his life!" Carol yelled. She slapped Bonnie harshly across the face. Bonnie stumbled backwards in shock and anger.

"Murderer!" Richard cried.

"Destroyer!" Carol screamed.

Bonnie started to back away from the two. She heard a strange noise behind her and spun on her heels to see what it was. She gasped at loud at what she saw.

Wolf Tyler emerged from the forest. He growled, baring his fangs which dripped with blood.

"Everything he does, every person he kills is on your head!" Carol declared angrily, suddenly appearing right behind Bonnie to speak directly in her ear.

"I didn't want this for you!" Bonnie said with tears falling down her face.

"You think he cares now?" Carol asked. "He's an animal, a wild beast. He is beyond human reasoning."

"All he knows is the hunger." Richard said. "The desire to kill."

"You want to kill her, don't you baby?" Carol asked Tyler as if she was speaking to a child. She backed away from Bonnie. "Don't us stand in your way. Kill, Tyler, KILL!" she yelled.

With a roar, wolf Tyler lunged forward, his gapping jaws salivating at the prospect of devouring Bonnie.

Bonnie screamed and cowered away just as his mouth closed around her.

XOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie fell from the couch to the floor screaming. Jeremy, surprised by her actions, jumped to his feet to be at her side on the floor.

"Bonnie!" he cried urgently. He grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her so she was facing him. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Bonnie opened her eyes and looked at Jeremy as if he were a vision. She blinked several times as if to clear her vision.

"Jeremy?" she asked tentatively.

"Yeah." Jeremy confirmed cradling her in his arms. "It's me. I'm here and everything is OK."

"Oh thank God!" Bonnie said with a sigh of relief. She reached up and pulled Jeremy into a tight embrace. "It was just a dream!"

"More if a nightmare I'd say." Jeremy said. He moved her to couch. "What were you dreaming about?"

"I don't want to talk about it." Bonnie said honestly. "Just," she paused and sighed. "Just hold me."

"I have you." Jeremy assured her tightening his arms around her. He held her for a few moments until she relaxed in his arms. "That must have been some nightmare."

"It was." Bonnie confirmed. She shuddered thinking about the dream and Jeremy felt it.

"I know you said you don't want to talk about it, but it might help to get it off chest. You don't have to bottle it all up."

Bonnie pulled away from him. "Jeremy, please don't push me on this. I am not ready to talk about it."

"Hey, calm down." Jeremy said soothingly. He rubbed her arms sympathetically. "You know when you are ready, I'll be here."

Bonnie smiled at him. He was so sincere and she loved him so much. She leaned in and kissed him briefly on the lips. "Thank you. That really does make me feel better."

A girl screamed on the TV getting both of their attention. Bonnie turned away from the screen having no desire to watch the girl get hacked to death.

"Maybe we could change the movie." Bonnie suggested.

"Yeah, I am no longer in a horror movie mood." Jeremy confirmed. He grabbed the remote and stopped the blue ray.

"Did you want to watch another movie?" Bonnie asked.

"Why? So you can fall asleep again?" Jeremy teased her.

Bonnie smiled. "I'll make you a deal – I'm going to the bathroom. Why don't you choose a comedy from that case? When I get back, we'll sit down and watch it together and I promise I'll stay awake."

"Deal." Jeremy agreed.

"Seal it with a kiss?" Bonnie asked.

Jeremy leaned in planted one right on her lips. The kiss was brief, but sweet. Bonnie stood to walk to the restroom.

"Hurry back." Jeremy said swatting her playfully on the butt. "I miss you when you're gone."

"I'll just be a minute." Bonnie replied.

She hurried into the bathroom and shut the door. She didn't actually have to use it. She just wanted to splash some cold water on her face and try to clear her mind from that nightmare. Thinking about that only made her feel guilty. Tyler was gone and she was to blame. Sure, Oliver bore most of the responsibility for what happened to Tyler, but Bonnie wasn't blameless. It was her power that did this to Tyler. Mrs. Lockwood blamed and, if he were alive, she was certain Mr. Lockwood would blame her as well. She had to make things right for Tyler and for herself.

"Hey, what do you think about an action movie?" she heard Jeremy call from the living room.

"Comedy Jeremy!" Bonnie yelled back.

Oh Jeremy. She loved that man. As much as she loved him, however, Tyler wasn't something she could talk about with him. Somehow, she didn't think he would understand her desire to go make things right for her ex-boyfriend.

She pushed thoughts all thoughts of this out her mind. She turned the water on and slashed the cold liquid on her face. It was refreshing. She grabbed a hand towel and began to blot her face dry.

"Ouch!" Bonnie said as she patted the right side of her face. It was tender. She took to the towel down and looked at herself in the mirror. There was a slight redding to her face.

"What the hell?" Bonnie wondered aloud. How had she hurt her face? Then she remembered. Carol Lockwood had slapped her in her dream. "Is this possible?" Bonnie asked. "Can what happens in my dreams become real when I am awake?"

Bonnie reached in her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. She had to call someone with more arcane knowledge than her. She dialed Tim's number.

Meanwhile, Jeremy was loaded the blue ray player with a fresh movie. He's chosen The Holiday. Not exactly a comedy, but he knew it was one of Bonnie's favorite movies. He heard front door opening and turned to see Bonnie's father, Dr. Tom Bennett entering the house. He dressed in scrubs as he was coming home from work at the hospital.

"Jeremy! My man!" Dr. Bennett said shutting door behind him. "What going on?"

"How are you doing, Dr. Bennett?" Jeremy asked. He greeted the doctor and they shook hands.

"I'm good, son. I take it you are here with Bonnie?"

"Yes sir." Jeremy confirmed. "She taking a bathroom break while we are in between movies."

"A movie night? That sounds fun. What'd you guys watch so far?"

"We started off with A Nightmare on Elm Street and now we are going to watch The Holiday. You are welcome to join us." Jeremy offered.

"Yeah right." Dr. Bennett said with a sarcastic chuckle. "Bonnie still hasn't stopped ridding me about when I joined you guys for dinner two weeks ago. But thanks for the offer."

Jeremy chuckled. "You are welcomed to join us anytime."

"So you say," Dr. Bennett said. "But I think my daughter has other thoughts. Besides, you already watched the movie I would want to see. I can't believe you got Bonnie to watch a Freddy Kruger movie."

"Well, she slept through most of it." Jeremy admitted.

"She slept?" Tom asked surprised. "I'm glad. She's been having nightmares every since we were all kidnapped."

Kidnapped. Jeremy knew that was the story Damon made up to cover the supernatural events that took place in the woods weeks ago. Damon convinced everyone that Dr. Bennett, Bonnie, Jeremy, Tyler and Mayor Lockwood were kidnapped by a radical racist group that didn't like the fact Tyler and Bonnie were dating. It was a stretch in Jeremy's mind, but the press seemed to buy it. They liked the sensationalist twist to the story. Mayor of a Small Town Killed by White Supremacist – that's what the headlines read. It even made the national news. The survivors of their horrific night had to endure days of pressure from the press to talk about what happened.

"She has?" Jeremy asked brining his thoughts back today and Bonnie. He was surprised that Bonnie hadn't told him she was having nightmares.

"Yeah, pretty bad ones too." Dr. Bennett confirmed.

"She actually had another one tonight. It was pretty crazy." Jeremy said concerned.

"And let me guess, she wouldn't talk about it."

"Not a word." Jeremy confirmed.

Dr. Bennett became pensive. "I've been trying to let her work though this, but if the dreams keep up I am going to force her to talk to someone. It's not healthy to keep everything bottled in."

"Maybe I'll try talking to her about it again." Jeremy suggested.

"I would appreciate if you would." Dr. Bennett said. "You two are so close and I'd like to think she'd be more comfortable talking to someone she knows."

They heard the bathroom door open and Bonnie soon joined them in the living room.

"Hi Dad." Bonnie said plopping down on the couch next to Jeremy. "When'd you get home?"

"A few minutes ago. Jeremy tells me you are going to watch the Holiday. Again." he added with humor.

"Not my fault!" Bonnie said holding up her hands. "I told him he could choose the movie and he chose this."

"That's because he is a smart young man. He knows pleasing you will make his life easier in the long run." Dr. Bennett said.

"I knew I liked you for a reason." Bonnie playfully said to Jeremy and he just chuckled.

"Well, I am going to leave you two to it." Dr. Bennett said standing. He walked over to Bonnie and kissed on the top of her head. "I am going to bed. Good night." He turned to Jeremy and shook his hand again. "You, me and Alaric, we gotta get that fishing day scheduled."

"I was thinking July, the peak of Sailfish season."

"Sounds good. We can take my boat. You'll coordinate a date with Alaric?"

"Yeah, Dr. Bennett I'll get it scheduled."

"Good man." Dr. Bennett said with smile. "You two have a good night."

"Night Daddy." Bonnie said. She watched her dad leave the room and then turned to Jeremy. He was using the remote to start the movie. He felt her staring and turned to face her.

"What?" He asked.

"I really like that you get along so well with my father." Bonnie said with a smile.

"Dr. Bennett is a cool dude." Jeremy said with a shrug.

"It's very sweet that you want to go fishing with him."

"I enjoying fishing and you guys have an awesome boat." Jeremy explained.

"As a matter of fact, it's kind of sexy that you get along so well with my father." Bonnie said with a coy smile.

"Really?" Jeremy asked, his interest piqued.

"Un-huh." Bonnie confirmed leaning back on the sofa and pulling Jeremy towards her. "It really turns me on."

"In that case, have I ever told you I think your father is the greatest guy ever?" Jeremy joked and Bonnie laughed. He kissed her deeply and she responded passionately to his touch. He broke the kiss after a few moments.

"We'd better stop." He said breathlessly. "We can't take this any further with you dad here."

"I know." Bonnie agreed. She scooted up on the couch and fixed her clothes. "Let's watch the movie." Bonnie said. Jeremy pulled away and distanced himself from Bonnie. "What are you doing?" Bonnie asked confused.

"Putting some space between us. I can't be that close to you and not touch you." Jeremy answered. Bonnie tossed a pillow at him.

"Wimp." She said jokingly.

"Temptress." Jeremy said tossing the pillow back. She put it under her back and turned to watch the TV. He took her legs and laid them across his lap. "Ready?" he asked.

"Ready." She confirmed. He hit play to start the show.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"So what do you think?" Bonnie asked Tim. She paced for floor in Gram's living room.

She invited Tim over to get his thoughts on the nightmare she'd been having. With each day, the dreams became more and move vivid. When the physical repercussions of Carol slap manifested outside of the dream, Bonnie's anxiety went into overdrive. How was that possible? She needed answers and Tim was her best bet.

"You know what I think because you are thinking it too." Tim answered with his marked southern accent. His shoulder length hair was pulled back into a ponytail. He was dressed casually in tee shirt, jeans and flip flops. "These aren't dreams you are having, but visions."

"Yeah, but what do they mean?" Bonnie asked sitting the air on one of the chairs.

Tim was thoughtful for a second. "At first, I thought it was your guilt about what happened to Tyler tapping into your powers causing bad dreams."

"It can do that?" Bonnie asked surprised.

Tim smiled. Because of how powerful she was, he sometimes forgot that Bonnie was still very much a novice in the art of witchcraft. Unlike him, she didn't grow up surrounded by magic and practicing to master its subtleties.

"Bonnie remember, your will is how you control your powers. You feel guilty about what happened to Tyler, right?"

"Yeah." Bonnie confirmed. "I _did_ turn him into a wolf."

"There's more to that story and you know it." Tim said. "But anyway, you feel guilty and you think you deserved to be punished. So your will allows your guilty feelings to tap into your powers causing your bad dreams."

"So that's what you think is going on?" Bonnie asked.

"No." Tim said shaking his head. "That's what I thought was going on at first. That slap changes everything. That sounds like an attack."

"From who?" Bonnie asked. "Carol Lockwood?"

"I doubt it." Tim answered. "My guess is another witch."

"But I don't know any other witches." Bonnie objected. She ran both her hands through her hair, clearly stressed out.

"Doesn't mean they don't know you." Tim said. He stood and walked to Bonnie's side and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Look, don't worry. You come to the right guy. We'll do a spell of protection around you. With your powers and my skill, it will be unbreakable. Everything will be fine."

Bonnie sighed relieved. She believed Tim. "Thank you."

Tim walked over to coffee table and grabbed two candles. "Let's do the spell right now." He handed her one of the candles. "Would you do the honors?" With but a thought Bonnie used her powers and the candles flared. "Perfect." Tim said. "Now close your eyes and concentrate. I am going to cast the spell, but I'll channel your powers to strengthen it."

Tim and Bonnie held the candles in one hand and each other's hand in the other. Tim whispered the arcane words and the candles burned brighter for that moment. Bonnie could feel her witch abilities firing off. It was a warm sensation she was becoming used to.

"All done." Tim announced opening his eyes. Bonnie did the same. The candles were completely melted. Only puddles of liquid wax remained in the candle holders. "Well, how do you feel?" Tim asked.

"Better. Stronger." Bonnie answered honestly. "You know it's strange. That was the first time I cast a spell and I don't feel the least bit tired or anything."

"It's the energy in this house. It is perfect for casting spells. Your grams had to work hard to get the energy just right in here. This is the way working magic should be."

"Thank you for your help, Tim." Bonnie hugged him. "As usual, you are miracle worker."

"You know you don't have to thank me." Tim said. "With my father going nuts and all you are like the only family I have left."

"You consider me family?" Bonnie asked surprised. "I'm touched."

"Well if you think about it, your mother is the only mother I've ever known. She raised me. In my book, that makes you my kid sister." Tim said putting his arm around Bonnie.

"I've never had any siblings but I can't think of anyone I'd rather have for a big brother." Bonnie said.

"Then it's official – we're family!" Tim declared with a big smile.

"Yea!" Bonnie said with a laugh. "I see another birthday gift in my future!"

"Now I see why you opened me with open arms!" Tim joked. "You are something special, Bonnie Bennett."

"As are you, Tim Steward!"

"Well, I gotta go now. I have an appointment with the manager at the Mystic Falls Inn. If I am going to be staying there long term I want a better rate."

"You're staying at a hotel?" Bonnie asked surprised.

"Yeah. Me and my dad had a pretty sweet apartment on the 3rd level of Club Oz, but I haven't been back there for weeks. Not since I found out dear old dad wasn't who I thought he was."

"Isn't that expensive?" Bonnie asked.

"Don't worry; I can afford it." Tim said quickly. "Say what you will about my father, but he left me very well off. I can afford to stay there indefinitely. I try not to think about what he probably did to get the money though."

"I'm glad you have someplace, but a hotel isn't a home."

"Let me stop you right there, Bonnie. Don't think I am coming to stay with you and your dad. That'd be great for a day or two, but it's not a long term solution."

"I agree." Bonnie said. "But what about staying here? It's completely furnished and you love the energy."

"Are you serious?" Tim asked as he looked around.

"Absolutely. My dad and I have been talking about what to do with the place. My grams left it to me, but since I'm 17 he's has a say in what I do as my legal guardian. He knows I won't sell it, but he doesn't want to keep paying to support two houses. Grams left me quite a bit of money in her will, but Dad don't want me using it to pay for this house. We talked about renting the house out, but I wasn't too keen on the idea. But if you rent it that changes everything!"

"Well, I am touched that you think enough of me to let me live here."

"I can't think of a better person." Bonnie said excitedly.

"This will be the perfect place for you to learn and practice your magic. And you know you'd always be welcome here."

"You say that now, but just wait until you get a girlfriend. Then you'll get tired of me just popping over." Bonnie joked.

Tim laughed. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that!"

"So you are interested?" Bonnie questioned.

"Most definitely!"

"Perfect! I'll talk to my dad. I am sure he will want to meet you and have to sign a lease and everything."

"Of course." Tim said. "Today has been a good day. I got a baby sister and a place to live!"

XOXOXOXOXO

"Why is nothing happening!" Carol Lockwood asked angrily. She stood up and walked away from the table they were all sitting at with Oliver Steward and Pearl. She flipped the lights on in the room, causing both the vampire and witch to cover their eyes at the sudden change.

"This is a delicate business." Oliver explained. "You must be patient."

"I've been patient." Carol yelled. "For over three weeks you and this vampire have been hid away here in the west wing of my house. I've provided you everything you could possibly ask for. I even allowed this vile creature to compel and feed off of my staff!" Carol said pointing at Pearl.

"In exchange, you promised me the return of my son and revenge on Bonnie Bennett. So far you've yet to deliver! I say we just confront her openly. All of these sneak attacks are beneath me."

Oliver grimaced as he fought to maintain his temper. His initial encounter with Bonnie left him very weakened. When she ripped his stolen powers from him, he almost died. Slowly he was rebuilding his strength. True, he would never be as strong as he once was, but Oliver was still a powerful witch in his own right and each day he got stronger.

"Carol we've been over this." Oliver said. "Bonnie is a much more powerful witch then I. I can't attack her directly. However, I've horned my skills over 10 lifetimes. She can't match that. Our attack must be crafty to take her down."

"If you want your son back, you'll listen to Oliver." Pearl added from the table. She still had gapping wound in her side from where Tyler bit her. It would not heal. It was only by Oliver's witchcraft that she wasn't dead.

"Don't talk to me vampire!" Carol ordered. "I still don't know why we need you."

"I've explained this. Bonnie has aligned herself with the Salvatore brothers. Together, they are formidable foes. We need allies as well."

"But she's sick!" Carol objected. "She is of no help to us."

"Once Pearl is whole again, she will be more than a match for the Salvatores." Oliver said. "And the key to getting her healthy lies in finding your son."

"And to find my son we need Bonnie." Carol finished Oliver's thought. They'd had this conversation many times before. Carol just wanted action now, especially after last night. Oliver used his magic to put Carol in Bonnie's nightmare. The pleasure she felt from slapping that little witch was indescribable. She needed that again.

"We've planted enough seeds in Bonnie's subconscious that she will have no choice but to go search for Tyler." Oliver said.

"Are you sure?" Carol questioned.

"Yes. It wasn't hard actually. She wants to help him. She already felt awful about what happened to him."

"About what you did to him!" Carol interrupted.

"It was your husband's idea." Oliver lied.

"The bastard! I am glad he is dead."

"Anyway, I guarantee she will go find him and reverse the spell. And then we can have our revenge."

"Fine, I get the big picture. But what about now? How come we can't enter her mind again?"

"She's cast a spell of protection." Oliver said. "It's creating a barrier around her mind."

"Can't you break it?" Carol asked annoyed.

"No, it's too strong."

"Wonderful!" Carol answered sarcastically.

"There is no need to be upset. I told you this would happen. That just means now it is time to entered phase two of the plan…"

XOXOXOXOXO

"How do I look?" Elena asked Bonnie.

The two were in Elena's kitchen cooking. Well, Bonnie was cooking and Elena was watching. Elena asked Bonnie to help her prepare a special meal for Stefan. It was their 1 year anniversary and they were planning to celebrate. Bonnie was only too happy to help. Since finding love herself, Bonnie found her position toward Stefan had changed a great deal. He made Elena happy and that was good enough for her.

Soon after she arrived, Bonnie instructed Elena to leave the cooking to her and for Elena to go get dressed for dinner.

"No!" Elena protested. "I asked for your help with dinner. I don't expect you to cook it for me. It's enough that you helped me plan the menu."

"I don't mind." Bonnie insisted. "Besides, I want to do it alone for a couple of reasons: 1) I don't want to show you all my secrets and 2) I think I owe you for my first date with Jeremy."

"Whatever do you mean?" Elena asked, trying to play dumb.

"Oh come off it, Elena." Bonnie said taking the food Elena bought out of the refrigerator. "I know it was you who helped Jeremy prepare that ultra romantic picnic on the beach for our first date."

"I don't have a clue what you are talking about." Elena said with a knowing smile.

"You can stop it, Elena." Bonnie said wagging a finger at her. "He told me everything."

"That squealer!" Elena exclaimed. "He was supposed to keep it a secret and take all of the credit for it!"

"Don't be mad. I can be very persuasive." Bonnie said. "It was the perfect evening for the two of us and if I can help you and Stefan have the perfect evening you better believe I will."

"I have to admit I am little nervous about tonight." Elena told her.

"What?" Bonnie asked surprised. "Why? It's dinner with Stefan. You've don't that like a thousand times."

"I know, but it's our anniversary. I want it to be special."

"Well you don't have to worry about the food. You are in Chef Bonnie's hands and I will make sure everything is just right."

"Thank you so much for all of your help, Bonnie." Elena said. She walked over and hugged her.

"You thank me by going up stairs, taking a long hot shower to relax and get ready for your date tonight. Leave the rest to me." Bonnie ordered.

Elena complied with the orders and left the kitchen. She returned 1 ½ later looking spectacular. She pulled her hair back in an elegant twist. She wore a gorgeous red dress that accentuated her petite figure. Bonnie let out a playful cat call.

"Hot Momma coming thought!" Bonnie said. Elena laughed.

"So you think he'll like the dress?"

"Unless he blind he will." Bonnie said.

"Wow! It smells absolutely wonderful in here." Elena stated taking a seat on the stool at the counter. "Do you need any help?"

"Nope. I have everything under control." Bonnie said as a yawn escaped her lips.

"You even set the table!" Elena said looking into the dining room. "It's beautiful. You went all out."

"Well, I had a little help." Bonnie admitted.

"From who?" Elena asked surprised. No one else was in the house.

"I used my magic to set the table. It's the witch's way of multitasking."

"Well it looks phenomenal. Thank you."

"Happy to help." Bonnie said as she yawned again.

"Stop it!" Elena commanded Bonnie.

"Stop what?" Bonnie asked stirring the pot on the stove.

"Yawing." Elena elaborated. "You've been yawing all day. Is Jeremy doing that good of a job keeping you up at night?"

"I wish!" Bonnie said without thinking. She turned to face Elena with an abashed look on her face. "Sorry!" she apologized. "Was that awkward for you?"

"It's only awkward because you keep apologizing every time you say something about him." Elena said. "Like I told both you and Jeremy, I am OK with you guys dating. As a matter of fact, I'm happy about because I can't remember a time when I seen you both so happy."

"I know and I believe that you are happy for us." Bonnie said. "But it's one thing to be happy about us dating. It's another thing for me to make sexual innuendos about your brother."

"It comes with the territory when your best friend dates your brother. Don't worry; I can handle it." Elena said. "Not that I want specific details or anything, but you don't have to walk on eggshells whenever he comes up."

"Gotcha." Bonnie said.

"So if my brother isn't the reason you can barely keep your eyes open-"

"Elena!" Bonnie exclaimed at her friend's brazen comment.

"Then why are you so tired?" Elena finished her statement with a smile. She enjoyed teasing Bonnie about Jeremy. It clearly made her uncomfortable and it was funny to see.

"I've been having these weird dreams lately." Bonnie said grateful to change the subject. "It's making it hard to sleep."

"What are they about?" Elena asked.

"This is that, nothing important." Bonnie lied. She didn't want to talk about it with Elena.

The door bell rang and Bonnie almost sighed in relief.

"That must be Stefan!" Elena exclaimed. She jumped up from her chair and rushed to the door. She opened it and Stefan as indeed on the other side.

"Hi." She said letting him in.

Stefan smiled and kissed her briefly. He came through the door with his hands behind his back. He brought them in front to reveal a bouquet of flowers and box of candies.

"Rose and chocolate." Elena said surprised. "How traditional. Thank you Stefan."

"You said you wanted as normal of a night as possible so I decided go with the tried and true gift."

"It's perfect!" Elena said. She kissed him. "Let me put these in some water." Elena said in reference to the flowers.

"Is that Bonnie's car I see in the drive way?" Stefan asked following Elena into the kitchen. "Oh hi Bonnie." Stefan said upon seeing her. "I didn't know you were going to be joining us tonight."

"I'm not, Silly." Bonnie said smiling. "I was just helping Elena with dinner. You can pretend like I'm not even here because as soon as Jeremy gets home we'll leave and you two can have the house all to yourselves."

"I didn't mean it like that, Bonnie." Stefan said. "It's always a pleasure seeing you."

"I know, but that doesn't mean you want me crashing your anniversary dinner. You give me those," Bonnie taking the flowers from Elena. "And you two go sit down at the table. I already set the appetizer out. It's Camembert with Truffle Cream. You can eat it with either bread or fruit. Now go."

The two left the kitchen and went to the dining room. Bonnie found a vase to put the flowers in. She filled it with water. She set that to the side and fixed the plates for the main course. Once that was done, she grabbed the flowers and took them to the dining room. She set it on the side of the table to provide nice ambiance.

"Bonnie – this is amazing." Stefan said eating the food.

"Don't tell me." Bonnie said. "Tell Elena. She did-"

"Absolutely none of the work." Elena said finishing her statement. "You did all of this and it wonderful! Thank you."

"Happy to help. Join me in the kitchen for a second, Elena." Bonnie said walking out of the room. Elena got up and followed.

"Ok, when you are ready for dinner all you have to do is grab these two plates." Bonnie said showing her. "You have here filet mignon with mushroom-wine sauce, mashed potatoes and garlic-thyme roasted asparagus. Oh no!" Bonnie said looking at Elena with terror on her face.

"What?" Elena asked concerned.

"Garlic! I forgot. Stefan's a vampire!"

"Don't worry about that." Elena said with a chuckle. "Vampires' aversion to garlic is an urban legend. Stefan loves the stuff."

"Thank God!" Bonnie said. She pointed to a bottle of red wine. "Drink this with dinner. I used it to make the wine sauce for the stakes so it will compliment the food perfectly." She walked Elena to the stove and opened a covered skillet. "This is dessert. It's bananas foster. You'll want flambé it,"

"Um flambé?" Elena interrupted.

"Set it on fire." Bonnie explained. "Do that right before you serve it. Let the flames die down and then put it over a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Be careful." Bonnie instructed. "Garlic and vampires may be a legend but I know for a fact they don't like fire."

Elena smiled. "Thank you so much for all of your help." She hugged Bonnie again.

"I am glad to help!" Bonnie said with smile. "I am going to go upstairs and wait for the Jeremy in his room. Call me if you need anything.

Bonnie left the kitchen and went up to Jeremy's room. She sat at his desk and used her phone to log onto Facebook. She leaned on the desk as she read the post from her friends. Absently she knocked a book off of the desk. She reached down to get it and couldn't believe her eyes. It was a book of poetry. But not just any book, it was her favorite. She had discovered it at Grams' house.

She looked at the book. It wasn't hers as it was brand new. The one from Grams' house was older than her. This one looked liked it had only been opened once or twice. She was so engrossed in examine the book she didn't hear Jeremy enter the room.

"I would have gotten a job sooner if I'd known I'd get to come home to you in my bedroom every day." Jeremy said. Today was his first day as a mechanic apprentice at Lou's Auto Shop. He was in his coverall that read his name. His hands were filthy and he had oil smudges on his face.

Bonnie put the book on the desk and stood. She walked over to Jeremy and hugged him. "Hi! How was your first day of work?"

"Exhausting." Jeremy said. He walked to his desk and sat down. He bent down to until his work shoes. "I spent most of the day changing the oil on every car that came in. And then when I thought I was done, the boss asked for my help changing out the engine on this car. I think he was testing to me to see if I knew what I was doing."

"How do you think you did?" Bonnie asked.

Jeremy shrugged. "Pretty good, I guess. It was hard work, but I just kept thinking about making $13.50 an hour. By the end of summer I should have enough saved to get my own car so I won't have to borrow Elena's like I did today." He reached out and grabbed Bonnie's hand and pulled her towards him. He sat her down on his lap. "It's a nice surprise coming home and finding you in my bedroom, though."

Bonnie smiled, leaned in and kissed him. She broke the kissed when he yawned.

"Is my working man tired?" she asked playfully.

"You don't know the half if it. I must have changed the oil on 100 cars today." Jeremy exaggerated.

"You smell like it." Bonnie said crinkling her nose. She giggled at her own joke as Jeremy blushed a little.

"You don't like my cologne? It's called Working Man Sweat." Jeremy joked.

"It definitely a masculine scent." Bonnie said. She stood. "Why don't you shower and then we'll get out of here?"

"I have a better idea." Jeremy said standing. He took her hands in his. "Why don't you join me in the shower and then we can both chill here? Jenna and Alaric are away for the weekend so you won't even have to worry about that."

"I know Jenna is away but Elena and Stefan are down stair." Bonnie said. "It's their one year anniversary and I promised her I'd get you out of the house so they could have it all to themselves."

Jeremy frowned. "What about us?"

"Well, my dad thinks I am staying the night here. We could go to Grams and that way we'd be all alone too." Jeremy smiled and leaned forward to kiss here. Bonnie stuck her arm out and pushed against his chest. "You have to shower first." Bonnie said with a playful smile.

Jeremy rolled his eyes good-humoredly and left the room. He returned about 15 minutes later fresh from the shower wearing nothing but a towel. Bonnie lay across his bed reading the book of poetry.

"Is this better for you, princess? I am Zest-fully clean." He walked to his dresser and got a pair of boxers.

Bonnie got up and walked by him. "Mmmm." She said smelling him. "This is much better."

Jeremy smiled and took her in his arms. "Are you sure we have to leave? If we stay in my room we won't be in Elena's way."

"But if we go to Grams' we won't be confined to one room." Bonnie countered. "Quick, get dressed. We can be there in 15 minutes."

"Fine." he conceded. He dressed in a pair of jeans and button down shirt. The two left the Gilbert residence and went to Grams' house.

Bonnie opened the door and made the obvious announcement. "We're here."

"Thank God." Jeremy said. "I don't think I can wait any longer."

His hands cupped the back of her neck and gently he pulled her close. He took his time as his lips gently touched hers. Their contact of her mouth on his lips changed everything. This wasn't a teasing little kiss. It was hot, openmouthed, tongue stroking, and son of a bitch, it was nearing enough to finish him right there.

A shiver of longing went through Bonnie. She wrapped her arms around his neck and quickly became the aggressor. She felt his hands splayed wide across her back. How he'd gotten underneath her shirt was beyond her comprehension at the moment. She pulled him down to the floor.

Jeremy was an amazing kisser. He could give lessons. He took his time, savoring what he was doing, as he expertly explored her mouth with his tongue.

Jeremy grabbed her hands and wouldn't let her stroke him. He kissed her again, long and hard and then tried to speak.

"Bonnie are we going to do this right here?"

He wasn't sure if she heard him. She was nibbling on his earlobe, driving him nuts. Then she shifted on top of him and his jeans suddenly felt two sizes too small. It was damn painful. He grabbed hold of her hips to keep her from wiggling again. His voice was ragged when he said, "If we are going to move, now's the time."

"Yes, of course."

She didn't resist when he moved her off of his lap. She stood next to him and looked away as she tried to catch her breath. Kissing anyone else had never caused such a reaction.

He threaded his fingers through her hair. He was throbbing with his need to touch her. To feel her naked body underneath him… taste her liquid heat… to hear her moans of please… to…

"Come on!" he said urgently. He led the way to her room at Grams' house. Once there, his mouth settled on hers, his tongue slowly penetrated and then began to stroke hers until she trembled in his arms. He couldn't get enough of her. Slowly, he eased her shirt up.

The second he touched the sides of her breasts and felt her shiver he knew he was lost. He tore his mouth away from hers, kissed her neck and then moved lower.

He stepped back, lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed. His mouth left hers long enough to pull her shirt over her head.

"You are so beautiful." He whispered.

She nibbled his ear as she tugged his shirt off. The contact of her breast against his chest made her shiver again. She helped him out of his jeans.

Cradling her in his arms, he followed her down onto the bed. His hands caressed every inch of his body. She was just as passionate, as giving and as frantic to please him. She rubbed up against him, cuddled him between her thighs. He loved the feel of her soft body pressed so intimately against his own.

He left her long enough to get protection and when he was ready, he drew her into his arms and kissed her again, a hot searing kiss that made her ache to have him inside her. Her response stunned him. She became a wild woman in his arms and the sexy sounds she made drove him crazy.

Her legs moved restlessly against his. "Don't make me wait much longer…please," she whispered.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her wonderfully feminine scent as he thrust deep. He growled with such low intense please he thought he would die from it. The please she gave him intensified as the both stopped thinking and got out of the way of their feelings. They became mindless to the world, as if only the two of them existed. For that period of time, there were not thoughts, no problems, no fears, and no insecurities.

Jeremy collapsed on top of her and lifted up on one elbow. He could hear her ragged breathing as she took deep breaths trying to calm her racing heart. He looked her in the eyes and laughed.

"Damn you're beautiful."

She smiled as he ran his thumb across her lips.

"Can you feel my heart? It's still trying to jump out of my chest."

"I think sharing a soul with you have made our physical encounters that much more intense." Jeremy surmised.

"I think sharing a soul has other effects as well." Bonnie said.

"Like what?"

Bonnie reached into the nightstand and pulled out her poetry book. She handed it to him. "Does this look familiar?" She asked.

"Yeah. It looks like the book I just bought. Were you reading it?" he asked putting it on the bed beside him.

"Yes. I hope you don't mind. I found it on your desk."

"I don't mind at all."

"Do you like poetry?" Bonnie asked curious.

"Not really." Jeremy answered. "I was at the store the other day and this book was on display. I am not sure way I bought it. It just felt right at the time."

"It's strange because this is my favorite book of poetry."

"Huh." Jeremy said playing in her hair. "What a coincidence."

"I don't think it is." Bonnie said. "The other day when Elena and I were in the grocery store waiting in line to check out, I picked up a magazine to read while we waited. Do you know what magazine it was? Popular Mechanics." Bonnie said without giving him time to guess.

"You're kidding." Jeremy said in disbelief.

"No, I'm not. At first, I thought I grabbed it because of the hot guy on the cover, but then there was this article about new ether fuel that I found really interesting."

"I read that article too." Jeremy said "That was pretty good."

"Sure, but I don't give a crap about cars." Bonnie said.

"And I don't read poems." Jeremy confirmed. "So you think this one of the side effects of us sharing a soul. That we are starting to take on each other's likes?"

"Exactly." Bonnie said.

"You becoming a gear head." Jeremy mused. "There are worse things that could happen."

"Like what, you writing poems for a living?"

Jeremy frowned at the thought. "That would be awful."

"No worse than me coming home with car oil and dirt under my fingernails." Bonnie said.

"On the flip side, it's another way that we are getting closer."

"We are going to be as close as two people could possibly be." Bonnie agreed.

"Then why is it so hard for you to talk to me about your bad dreams?" he asked.

"What?" Bonnie questioned thrown by the change in subject.

"Your nightmares. Why did I have to find out from your father that you have been having nightmares since that night in the forest?"

"I don't like to talk about them." Bonnie said turning her back to Jeremy. He reached out and turned her back to him.

"Bonnie, we share a soul. There is nothing you can't tell me. Your dad is concerned. I am too. He really wants you to talk to someone about this. I hope you know you can come to me with anything."

There was such sincerity in his tone of voice and love in his eyes. How could she not tell him? Bonnie smiled weakly before speaking.

"I don't think you are going to like what you hear."

"Try me." Jeremy encouraged her.

Bonnie relented and told him everything. She told him about the visions and how guilty she felt about what happened to Tyler. She told him how the slap happened in the dream but that she felt it afterwards. She explained her consulting with Tim and his belief that she was under attack. She told him about the protection spell as well. Jeremy was silent while she spoke. Finally, after absorbing it all, he asked a question.

"So you were able to talk to Tim about this, but not me?"

"Please don't be offended by that, Jeremy or jealous. My feelings for Tim are brother/sister type feelings. That made it easier for me to talk to him about Tyler than you. I don't want you to think that because I feel guilty about Tyler that I love you any less."

I don't think that at all Bonnie." Jeremy said. "It's totally understandable that you feel guilty about Tyler. It wasn't your fault, but I can see how you feel that way."

"Thank you for understanding." Bonnie said relieved.

"I hope you see now that you were worried for nothing. You really can tell me anything."

"Good. Because there is one more thing I want to tell you." Bonnie said looking him in the eyes.

"Let me guess." Jeremy said. "You want to search for Tyler."

"I want to search for Tyler." Bonnie confirmed.

"Then we will search for Tyler." Jeremy said. "Together."

**End Chapter**

So what did you think? My goal was to set the stage for the story with a solid intro that was interesting.

My fiancé told me that the love scene in the last chapter of I Feel Your Pain was pretty weak. (Sometimes I think he beleives I am trying to write softcore porn.) :) It's hard to write love scenes without being too graphic. I want them to be tasteful, but still steamy. Anyway, I tried to kick the love scene up a notch. Let me know what your thughts are about it.

In the next chapter, a search party is formed and new enemies are introduced. Damon also enters the scene and who knows what kind of trouble he is bringing with him!

I hoped you enjoyed chapter one! Please read and review!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Sorry for the LONG delay! With the holidays and everything else I had too much going on to get a decent chapter written. This week I put it on my goals to get chapter 2 published!

THANK YOU to all of those who have reviewed this story! That means so much to me!

Please read and review and let me know your thoughts!

Chapter 2:

Jeremy crept up behind Bonnie and snaked one arm around her waist. She could feel the heat of his bare chest against her skin that wasn't covered by the spaghetti strap shirt she was wearing. Despite the soaring temperature outside, and the stuffiness of Grams' house, his hot body felt wonderful.

"You are not helping." Bonnie said in a sing song voice as she put a book in the box, pretending not to be affected by his advances. She smiled as she felt Jeremy tighten his arm around her waist. He refused to be ignored.

Jeremy said nothing. He preferred to let his actions speak for him. He moved the lose ponytail at the base of her head, and kissed her neck gently. Bonnie sighed in appreciation.

"That's _really_ not helping." Bonnie said as she leaned back into his embrace, fighting to keep her resolve. She could smell his natural scent. It was strong and intoxicating. It took all of her strength not to toss him on the bed and ravish him right then and there.

Bonnie felt Jeremy smile against her neck and slowly make his way to her earlobe. His ginger kisses left a trial of delight across her skin. A sensual moan escaped her mouth as he seized her left earlobe with his pleasure inducing lips.

"But it does feel good." Bonnie admitted breathlessly.

"Then stop pretending to fight me." Jeremy whispered in her ear. He moved the box she was packing to the floor and laid across the bed. He held one hand out, inviting Bonnie to join him. "We both know how this is going to end."

"We can't." Bonnie said resolutely. "I promised my dad I'd have the rest and my personal stuff and Gram's personal stuff packed up and put away before Tim moves in here. That was two weeks ago and Tim moves in tomorrow. I have to get this project done."

"Just join me in bed first." Jeremy pleaded. "I'll help you pack up afterwards."

"Oh no! I am not falling for that again." Bonnie said shaking her head. "You said that yesterday and the day before that. Both days all we ended up doing was making love."

"I can't help it!" Jeremy said with a guilty smile on his face. "Now that I am working I don't get to see you as much as I want to. And when I do see you the last thing I want to do is pack boxes. I just want to be with you."

"I want to be with you too, but we have work to do first." Bonnie asserted.

"I think the best part of being with you is the conversations we have afterwards." Jeremy continued as if Bonnie hadn't spoken. "Don't you love our conversations?"

The conversations Jeremy referenced usually lasted hours. They were about any and everything. Neither person in the relationship could remember ever being so open and free. They told each other things they wouldn't dare tell anyone else.

Bonnie shared her fears about being the next millennial witch, of how she was afraid she couldn't live up to the expectations of the title. She also told him of how she was afraid to learn too much and become too powerful and become like Oliver.

Jeremy told Bonnie of his dreams for the future. His goal in life was to open up a custom auto shop in Mystic Falls. He wanted to design and modify cars. He told her he often wonders how his father, a tax accountant, would feel that his only son wants to be a grease monkey for the rest of his life.

The also bonded over the lonely both of them have felt for so long. After Grams died, Bonnie was the only witch she knew about. She felt lost and alone, trying to figure out who she was and what she could do all by herself.

Jeremy could easily relate. For a man so young, he'd lost so many loved one: his parents, Vicky and Anna. He felt assured that together, he and Bonnie could heal old wounds and start their love fresh and pure.

"You know I love our talks." Bonnie answered his question. "But we don't have to have sex to have those conversations."

"I know." Jeremy quickly agreed. "But you have to admit, the sex part is pretty amazing too."

"You do have a point there." Bonnie said with a giggle. "But lately you just can't seem to get enough!"

Jeremy smiled abashedly. It's your fault."

"My fault?" Bonnie said in disbelief.

"Uh-huh." Jeremy got on his knees in the bed and scooted closer to her. "If you weren't so damn beautiful," He leaned forward and kissed the right side of her neck. "And if you didn't smell so damn nice." He said before kissing the other side of her neck. "And if I didn't love you so damn much," he said before kissing her full on the mouth. After a few seconds he flopped back on the bed. "I'd be able to be around you and not go insane when I'm not touching you. So you see you're the problem, not me."

"Oh really?" Bonnie asked smiling.

"Really." Jeremy confirmed. "So why don't you stop fighting me and let me solve the problem?"

Bonnie grinned as she looked at him, pondering his invitation. '_He looks so damn good!'_ she thought to herself.

When he arrived at Gram's from straight from work Bonnie insisted that he shower first before helping her. Now, fresh from the shower, his skin beamed with natural glow. His wet hair was combed back showcasing his devastatingly handsome face. Bonnie drank in hairless, well defined chest. She loved his broad shoulders and muscled arms. Her eyes were drawn to his treasure trail of hair that disappeared into the towel he was wearing. She wanted to rip it off and behold Jeremy in all his naked glory.

"Come on." Jeremy encouraged her. He reached up and grabbed her hand and pulled her on top of himself. He flashed her a cocky smile. "I'll let you be on top this time."

"You just want me to do all of the work." Bonnie playfully said as his mouth captured hers.

Being with Jeremy was like being in heaven. No matter what else was going on in her life, she quickly learned that Jeremy could make her forget about everything else and just be happy to be alive. When they were physically connected, it was like two halves coming together to make whole that was so much greater then the individual parts.

Jeremy couldn't even begin to describe the way Bonnie made him feel. To him, Bonnie was the sun. She brought heat, passion and life with her presence. Without her, existence would be cold, bitter and lifeless.

Bonnie straddled Jeremy and sat up breaking their kiss. He ran his hands up and down her stomach underneath her shirt. She smiled as she began to pull it off over her head.

There was a noise, the sound of a throat clearing near the doorway.

Bonnie's head snapped around to see who it was while instinctively Jeremy brought his hands up to her back and flipped her around to be beneath him, placing himself between Bonnie and the door.

"Did I interrupt you two?" Tim asked calmly from the doorway.

"Ya think?" Jeremy said making sure his towel was secure around his waist.

"Tim? What are you doing here?" Bonnie asked pulling her shirt down and then vainly attempting to fix her hair.

"Interrupting you two in the middle of a little afternoon delight I see." Tim said jokingly.

"Is there something specific you needed?" Jeremy asked annoyed.

"Yeah, to talk to Bonnie." Tim said smirking.

"So talk." Jeremy ordered sitting on the bed next to Bonnie.

"Is your name Bonnie?" Tim asked.

"No, but mine is." Bonnie interrupted them. "What do you need, Tim?"

"This is witches business," Tim said dismissively. He turned to Jeremy. "Uh, why don't you go put some pants on lover boy? You're in nothing but a towel and I'm fearful you going to stand up and accidentally introduce me to your one-eyed lizard with the saggy chin."

Jeremy shook his head at Tim's bizarre behavior. He stood to leave the room. "If you wanted to talk privately with Bonnie, why didn't you just say so?"

"I thought I just did?" Tim question as he watched Jeremy leave. He turned to see Bonnie frowning at him.

"You were just pretty rude to Jeremy. That's not like you. What's up?"

"How do you expect me to act?" Tim asked. "I come in to see that guy with his hands all over my sister. What do you want me to do, bake him a cake?"

"Tim, don't carry this brother/sister thing too far." Bonnie admonished him. "I mean I'm practically an adult. They last thing I need is another over-protective male figure butting in. Besides, if my actually father is cool with Jeremy, don't you think you should be too?"

"Your dad doesn't know all that you are doing with him. I do." Tim insisted.

"Be that as it may, you don't get to treat Jeremy rudely because you don't like it that he and I have a physical relationship."

"Fine. You two can bump uglies until the cows come home. That's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

"Then please enlighten me."

"It's about this house." Tim began. He pulled out the chair at the desk and sat down. "This is a three bedroom house with one bed room being Grams', one bed room was yours and the other was Grams' office. Now, we determined that the office was the focal point of the Wiccan energy Shelia has flowing though this house. I really don't want to disturb that room."

"So what, you want to move in Grams' old room?" Bonnie asked. She was silent for a second. "I guess that's cool. I haven't packed it up yet, but I can get it done today."

"Actually no." Tim said shaking his head. "I want this room."

"My room?" Bonnie asked surprised. "Why?"

"Bonnie, although I am staying here, this is your house. It seems fitting to me that you should move into the Grams' old room. It is the master bedroom and you are the mistress of the manner."

"I guess." Bonnie said hesitantly. Although she spent a lot of time in the house, Grams' room wasn't a place she cared to go to often.

"Good." Tim said standing. "Come on. I'll help you move your stuff down there. "

"That's all you wanted?" Bonnie asked surprised.

"No." Tim said shaking his head. "Like you asked I've been researching a way to reverse the spell that turned Tyler into a werewolf."

"Did you find way to help him?" Bonnie asked with a voice full of hope.

"No, not yet." Tim said. "But I did find out some interesting info on something called the Moonstone. With it, you could do more than reverse the curse. You could free werewolves from being able to transform only on the full moon."

"Why would I want to do that?" Bonnie questioned.

"I don't know. I am just letting you know the power of the Moonstone." Tim replied.

"Is there nothing we can do without the moonstone?" Bonnie asked.

"Don't know." Tim admitted. "But I've still got time to research, right? We are not meeting with everyone until Sunday, right?"

"Right." Bonnie confirmed. "Jeremy didn't have to leave the room for this conversation. He knows that I want to look for Tyler to change him back."

"I know." Tim said shrugging. "But he was making me uncomfortable in just a towel." He shuddered.

"Then why didn't you just say that?" Bonnie asked slapping him playfully on the shoulder.

"I thought I did?" Tim said picking up the box from the floor. "Besides, should I really have to tell a dude to put some pants on when another dude enters the room?"

"Is this better?" Jeremy said entering the room with a white V neck tee shirt and jeans on."

"I liked you better the other way." Bonnie said playfully. She pecked him on the lips and instantly Jeremy knew something was up. He grabbed her arms gently before she could walk away.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked softly.

"Nothing's wrong, there's just been a change of plans." Bonnie answered.

"What changed?"

"Tim is going to move into this room and I am going to take Grams old room." Bonnie explained.

"It's a lot of memories in that room. Are you sure you're ready for that?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah." Bonnie said slowly. "I think it's time." She grabbed an empty box that was flattened on the floor. She paused and looked at Jeremy. "Will you come with me?"

"You don't even have to ask." Jeremy said putting his arm around her waist as they walked out of the room together.

XOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie walked into the Mystic Grill famished. She spent the past two days helping packing up her personal belongings and helping Tim move what few person possessions he had into Grams house. After working on the house all day she was looking forward to meeting Jeremy here for dinner. She looked around the restaurant but didn't see him. She checked her watch, 6:51. She was early. She grabbed a booth by the bar and sent a text to Jeremy letting him know she was there.

"You've been avoiding me." Bonnie heard a voice say. She looked up to find Damon towering over her.

"Well hello to you too, Damon." Bonnie replied sarcastically.

Damon ignored the jab at his manners and slid into the booth across from her. "I haven't seen you in weeks."

Bonnie thought for a second, trying to remember the last time she seen Damon. It was room the night she woke up from her coma.

"Yeah, I guess it has been a long time." Bonnie confirmed.

"So why have you been avoiding me?" Damon asked. "I thought we had an understanding."

He used her words against him. When Damon mistakenly thought Bonnie was still in a coma, he bared his soul to her telling her every awful thing he'd done to worm his way into her life. She heard every word and when he thought she would banish him from her life, she hadn't. She only made a vague comment to Damon stating she understood who he was and left it at that.

"I haven't been avoiding you." Bonnie replied. "And we do have an understanding so I treat you accordingly."

"Treat me accordingly?" Damon echoed. "What does that mean?"

"That means you are someone who manipulated me and all my friends just to get what you want."

"And if I recall, you thanked me for that."

"I thanked you for saving my life. I forgave you for all of the terrible things you did leading up to that point. There's a difference." Bonnie clarified.

"Now you are just splitting hairs." Damon said folding his arms across his chest.

"Oh don't pout, you big baby." Bonnie ribbed him. "I'm curious, what kind of relationship did you think we would have after your accidental confession?"

"I didn't think we were going to have any relationship at all until you gave me that big speech about understanding me. What does that mean anyway?"

Before Bonnie could answer an attractive blond approached their table.

"Damon." The blond called out. "Sorry I'm late. We ran over on the photo shoot." She turned to acknowledge Bonnie. "Oh, who is your little friend?"

Bonnie arched and eyebrow at being referred to as Damon's little friend.

"Cara, this is Bonnie. Bonnie, Cara." Damon introduced the two. "She is a model in town filming a commercial for Lou's Automotive Shop."

"Nice to meet you, Cara." Bonnie said extending her hand. Cara took the tips of Bonnie's fingers into her hand and lightly shook it.

_'Oh geeze, she is one of _those_ girls…_' Bonnie thought to herself. Cara is apparently the type of prissy girl who wouldn't or couldn't give a decent handshake and was needlessly catty to all of the females.

"Don't even say that name of that awful place to me!" Cara stated. "Every guy there kept looking at me like I was a piece a meat! You think they'd never seen a girl in a string bikini before."

"You had to wear a bikini?" Bonnie asked. "That must have been uncomfortable."

Cara shrugged. "Most of my shoots involve me in some sort of bathing suit or another. When you are in the biz you get used to it. I thought I was used to men drooling over me but those brutes at Lou's were the worse! When I went on break, one of the mechanics was standing right over me. I had to tell him he was blocking my sun to get him to move. It was awful!" Cara whined.

"Bonnie, doesn't Jeremy work at Lou's Auto Shop?" Damon asked with a knowing smile on his face.

"Shut up, Damon." Bonnie retorted. The vampire's smile just widened.

"Look Cara – I am catching up with my good friend Bonnie and I'll just be a few minutes longer. Why don't you get a drink and I'll come join you at the bar when I am done here?"

"Ok." Cara said, clearly not happy that Damon wasn't going with her right then and there. "But don't keep me waiting long." She turned to Bonnie. "See you later."

"Not if I lucky." Bonnie mumbled as the girl walked away.

"I heard that." Damon said with his patented smirk clear on his face.

"So." Bonnie said nonchalantly.

"So I think you're jealous." Damon teased her.

"Think again." Bonnie retorted.

"Then how do you explain your attitude?" Damon challenged her.

"Easy. Cara's an idiot and she rubbed me the wrong way. I pity you for having to spend time with her tonight."

"Friends don't say such mean things to each other." Damon teased. "But then again we aren't friends, are we? Weren't you getting ready to explain to me the nature of our relationship as you see it before string bikini Barbie interrupted us?"

Bonnie thought about how to explain her logic to Damon. She then reached out and grabbed his right hand.

"On one hand Damon, you're a liar, a manipulator and a murder." She took his left hand into her grasp as well. "On the other hand, you're a fierce protector of those you care about; you're a great listener and you're this amazing risk taker."

"You forgot handsome." Damon interrupted.

"Damon." Bonnie said with a slight tilt to her head and a small smile.

"I'm handsome." Damon insisted giving her a cocky smile. "Admit it."

"You know you are good looking. You don't need me to tell you." Bonnie said. "I wouldn't have slept with you if I didn't think you were hot."

"Now we are talking." Damon said. "You remember how incredible we were together?"

"Damon, you are not going to side track me with a stroll down memory lane talking about all of our sexual encounters." Bonnie said with a smile. "Besides, there is so much more that makes you attractive then your admitted good looks. You also have this tender side that is an incredible draw."

"Tender side?" Damon mocked. "You're insane."

"Don't play dumb. You know what I am talking about." Bonnie said dismissing his sarcasm. "And because you are a manipulator you know exactly when to show your tender side as to pull us in."

"Us? Am I the subject of some massive conspiracy theory now?"

"Us as in women. You did it to Elena. You did it to me and I am sure if necessary you could do it to that moron at the bar to get what you want from her." Bonnie glanced at Cara and crinkled her nose. "Although in her case I really don't think she's worth it."

"Why would I go through all of that trouble of revealing some imaginary tender side when I could just use compulsion to get my way?" Damon questioned.

"If you were to compel us, it would be forced and you know it. But when you manipulate us, it's more real to you. I have to give you credit, using your vulnerability is pretty ingenious. As a matter of fact, I think you revealing your vulnerability is an even more powerful way for you to get what you want then using compulsion."

"You're insane." Damon bit out angrily.

"No, what I am is right, which why you are getting upset." Bonnie said. "But don't worry Damon. I am not saying all of this to hurt or because I am mad at you or because I want to condemn you. I am telling you this because I get you and I accept you for who you are."

"Oh really?" Damon said still angry, but intrigued.

"Yep. In the past, I tried to turn a blind eye to your shady characteristics because that made it easier to justify being with you. But look at what that cost me. I can't afford to do that anymore. Now, I deal with you as a whole. It's the only way to survive being in your orbit."

"You think you have me all figured out, don't you."

"Yep." Bonnie said with a smile. She reached out and took his hand. "Damon, it's a good thing. Now, we can have an honest, dare I say it, friendship." Bonnie joked tried to lighten the mood.

"You're boyfriend is here." Damon announced as he watched Jeremy approach their table. Bonnie pulled her hand away from Damon.

"Sorry I'm late." Jeremy said. Bonnie stood to greet him and pecked him on the lips. "There was this idiot model at the shop today for a commercial and she slowed us all down."

"Speaking of said idiot, I better get back to her before she sees something shiny and gets lured away." Damon said standing. "We'll finish our talk later, Bonnie. Jeremy." Damon said before he walked away.

"Asshole." Jeremy said about Damon. "What was he doing here?"

"He and I were just talking." Bonnie said. "I had to let him know I see him for exactly who he is."

"Come on." Jeremy said putting his arm around her. "Let's go someplace else for dinner. I don't even want to be in the same room as that jackass."

Bonnie and Jeremy walked out of the Mystic Grille with their arms wrapped around each other. Damon watched them go. Bonnie was right. She did get him better than anyone else he'd ever known. He decided then that type of understanding was all too rare and shouldn't be wasted on Jeremy Gilbert. He would make her his. Now, how to do it?

XOXOXOXOXO

"Is everyone here?" Alaric asked as he entered the Gilbert kitchen. He was the last to arrive at the house for a meeting Bonnie called. He looked around to see Elena, Jeremy, Bonnie, Stefan and Tim.

"Yeah, this is it." Elena confirmed.

"No Damon?" Ric asked.

"Wasn't invited." Bonnie confirmed. "We really don't need him for this." She explained.

"Where's Jenna?" Alaric questioned looking around.

"Out with her friend Sarah." Elena said. "We are OK to talk freely."

"Fine. Then let's get this little show on the road. Bonnie?"

"Thanks Ric." Bonnie said as she prepared to speak. Strangely, she felt nervous even though she was surrounded by loved ones. Jeremy placed a comforting hand at the small of her back and instantly she felt reassured. Oh how she loved that man! With her nerves gone, she addressed her friends.

"Ok, I've over the past two weeks I've talked to each of you separately about my desire to find Tyler and reverse what I did to him."

"Correction, what my father did to him." Tim interrupted.

"Whatever. I just want to undo what was done to him." Bonnie said. "Fixing this mess is a big problem. First we have to find Tyler, then we have to subdue him and bring him back to Mystical Falls, and then we have to find a spell that will change him back to normal. I can't do it all alone. In fact, I can't do any of it alone. I need your help."

"It's yours without asking." Stefan said which got him a sincere smile from Bonnie.

"Alright, first order of business: finding him. Alaric, this is where you shine."

"Bonnie asked me to take lead on tracking down Tyler. She assumed that I would be able to transfer my vampire hunting skills into tracking werewolves. I think I've done it." Ric rolled a map out on the counter. It had a small town in western Virginia circled. "You see this?" Ric asked pointing to the circle. "It's a small mountain town called Abingdon. It's been on every vampire hunter's radar as a hot spot for vampire activity."

"I've heard of it." Stefan chimed in. "For some strange reasons vampires are very protective of that city."

"It used to be a werewolf safe haven." Alaric began. "Back when werewolves were much more plentiful, they used to actually hunt vampires."

"You're kidding." Elena said.

"No, I'm not."

"My research supports this as well." Tim said.

"But we'll get to you later, Tim." Bonnie said. "Ric, continue."

"Everything that I can find tells me that werewolves and vampires are natural enemies. They hate each other instinctually. So naturally, they want to kill each other. Now, werewolves are only a match for vampires three days out of the month when they can take on their lycanthrope form."

"Wait a minute, three days?" Jeremy interrupted. "I thought they could only turn during the full moon."

"Another misconception. They can also turn the day before and the day after the full moon." Ric explained. "So as you can imagine, vampires were trying to kill all the werewolves they could while in their human forms and vulnerable."

"So werewolves don't have any special abilities when they are in their human form?" Elena asked.

"Oh no." Ric said shaking his head. "They still have their supernatural healing, agility and strength. It's just that in their human form they aren't as strong as vampires. The closer they get to a full moon, the stronger they become. Also as with vampires, the older ones seem to be the stronger ones.

Getting back to what I was saying, to protect themselves against vampires, the werewolves aligned with a witch in the city of Abingdon. The witch cast a spell that protected any wolf that entered in. Vampires were unable to kill them while they were in that city."

"I am confused," said Stefan. "Why would an enchanted city that protects werewolves be a hot bed of vampire activity? It would seem to me that that's the last place you expect to find a vampire."

"Because Abingdon lost its mystical enchantment sometime in the early 1800's." Alaric continued. "No one knows how it happened. I suspect the vampires found a witch powerful enough to remove the spell that protected the city. Legend has it that two days before the full moon, vamps swarmed the city and massacred hundreds of werewolves. The vampires then claimed the city for their own. It was a major turning point in the battle between the two species."

"That explains why the vampires are so protective of the city." Elena said.

"It's a symbol of their triumph over werewolves." Stefan completed her thought.

"But that doesn't explain what any of this has to do with Tyler." Bonnie said. "Can you close the loop for us, Alaric?"

"Yeah, absolutely. In the past 6 weeks or so, my sources tell me a new big bad has entered into Abingdon and it is killing vampires like crazy."

"You think it's Tyler?" Jeremy asked.

"Yeah. From what I been able to piece together, it's Tyler. The timing fits and from what I've been told, the vampires are dying horrific deaths consistent with those from werewolf bites. Every sign points to Tyler being in Abingdon."

"Good work, Ric. I think that takes care of locating him.." Bonnie complimented him. "The next step: subduing him."

"I have stuff that I think will put him down." Ric offered. "I got a tranquilizer so powerful it could put an elephant out."

"I don't think tranquilizers will do it." Stefan said. "With his supernatural healing, the drug would cycle through his system too quickly."

"Why not give him more than one tranq?" Jeremy asked.

"We don't know how much will be too much." Bonnie answered. "If we overdose him we could stop his heart and he could die."

"You think two would be too much?" Elena asked.

"I don't know, and that's the point." Bonnie replied. "We don't know the right amount to give an amped up werewolf. It's just too big of a risk."

"So Bonnie and I have come up with another method of restraining him." Stefan said. He paused and let Bonnie explain their plan.

"I am going to enchant a chain. They spell I cast will put whoever is bound by it under the control of the person holding the chain. That way, we can tame Tyler."

"So the tricky part will be binding Tyler with the chain." Ric said.

"That's where I come in." Stefan said.

"What! No!" Elena yelled vehemently. "Are you insane Stefan!"

"Elena, I am the only one who can do this." Stefan explained calmly. "I am the only one who can match his speed and strength."

"I don't care! It's too dangerous." Elena insisted. "All it would take is one bite from him and you'd be history." Elena turned to the larger group. "There has to be another way."

"He won't be doing this alone, Elena." Bonnie reassured her. "Between my magic and Ric's drugs, we are going to make it as safe as possible for Stefan to put the chain around him. It won't be risk free, but it will be much better than Stefan going in there by himself."

"I still don't like it." Elena said.

"But it's the best plan we have." Stefan told her.

"I guess." Elena conceded. "So what happens after you bind him?"

"We bring him back here where hopefully Tim will have found a way to change him back to normal." Bonnie said looking at Tim.

"Yes, while they are off playing Crocodile Hunter with everyone's favorite werewolf, I will be spending my time looking for a spell or someway to change Tyler back to normal." Tim said.

"What have you found so far?" Jeremy asked.

"Nothing useful." Tim replied. "The only sure fire way I discovered would be by use of the moonstone."

"What's the moonstone?" Stefan asked.

"An ancient mystical artifact used to curse both werewolves and vampires. Back in the day vampires and werewolves were able to room freely wherever they wanted to go. An Aztec shaman, fed up with his people falling prey to either species, cursed them both using the moonstone. It limited werewolf transformations to the full moon and made the sun the enemy of vampires."

"Impressive stone." Ric said.

"Yes." Tim agreed. "And with it, I could break the curse around Tyler."

"Is that the only way to reverse the spell?" Bonnie asked.

"They only way I've found so far, but don't worry." Tim said quickly. "If we don't have the moonstone, I've no doubt we'll figure something else out. With your powers, anything is possible. Every time I see Jeremy and he is alive and healthy and normal, I am reminded that you have no limits. We'll fix Tyler, even if we have to create a new way of doing it. You just focus on getting him back here."

"What about your father, Bonnie?" Elena asked. "You are going to gone for at least a few days to accomplish this. What did you tell him?"

"I took care of that, actually." Ric said. "I told Dr. Bennett that Bonnie missed the last few days of school because of her ordeal. In order to make up what she missed, she is accompanying me on an historical trip through Virginia for the next two weeks. He's already signed the permission slip."

"Wow you guys thought of everything." Elena said.

"We tried." Bonnie said. "Ok everyone so that is the plan. We go to Abingdon, find Tyler, bind him, bring him back here and then I break the curse."

"So good to me." Jeremy said. "So when do we leave?"

"We?" Bonnie questioned. "You are not going, Jeremy!"

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Tom!' Carol Lockwood called out as he strode past her in the hospital hallway. "Tom, wait up!" Carol said. She quickly said her goodbyes to the administrator she was speaking with and rushed to catch up with Dr. Bennett. "I am glad I ran into you." Carol said breathlessly. It was an honest statement. She'd been looking for an opportunity to put phase two of Oliver's plan into motion for some time now.

"How are you doing, Carol?" Tom said finally acknowledging her presence. He didn't slow his pace down, however.

"I'm doing as well as could be expected. Listen, is there someplace private where we can talk?" Carol asked.

Tom stopped and looked at her, considering her words. "We could use my office. It's right down the hall." He led the way into his office. Once there, he sat behind his desk while Carol pulled up a chair. "So, what can I do for you, Carol?"

"You could join me for dinner." Carol said bluntly.

"Excuse me?" Dr. Bennett said surprised at the offer.

"I would like for you and Bonnie to join me for dinner." Carol explained. "As a way of apologizing for my recent behavior."

"I don't think that's necessary." Tom hedged.

"Please, hear me out." Carol began. She paused and composed herself. She had to play this just right so as to avoid piquing the good doctor's suspicions. "Right after Richard died and Tyler disappeared, I was awful to your daughter. I guess I blamed her for surviving their whole ordeal, while my husband did not and Tyler went missing. It wasn't fair of me and I just want to make it up to her, to both of you."

"Carol, we understand how difficult dealing with that whole situation must of have been. You don't need to do any grand gestures to apologize."

Carol smiled. "I believe you understand, but I am not so sure about your daughter. I was dreadful to her, Tom. She has to hate."

"Bonnie doesn't hate you." Tom assured her.

"How can you be so sure?" Carol wondered.

"Because she told me so, right after your confrontation in the hospital. She actually stuck up for you and asked me to imagine how I'd feel if I were in your place."

"Wow." Carol said genuinely surprised. "You daughter is very compassionate. I don't know if I could have managed to be so graceful were I in her place." Carol impressed herself by managing to compliment Bonnie with a straight face.

"She is something special." Dr. Bennett confirmed.

"Then come to my house for dinner as a way for me to say thank you." Carol insisted. "What do you say? Tomorrow – 7:00 PM?"

"We can't, at least Bonnie can't." Tom informed her.

"No? She has other plans?"

"Yeah. She is going with her history teacher Mr. Saltzman, and a few other students for a historical trip through Virginia. It's a way for her to make up some of the work she missed by being out the last week of school. They leave tomorrow morning. Over the next two weeks they are going to visit historical sites all around the state as they make their way to the other side of Virginia to a small mountain village called Abingdon."

"That sounds exciting." Carol stating trying to mask her disappointment that Bonnie was leaving and their plan was falling apart.

"Not to me it doesn't." Tom said flatly. "To me it sounds boring as hell." he added with a smile. Carol laughed despite herself. "It's good to see you laugh. You've had a rough these past weeks."

"I see where Bonnie gets her compassion from." Carol said standing. "Even though Bonnie can't make it, the offer for dinner still stands. It's been lonely in that big house all by myself. I'd love to have a friendly face to have dinner with."

"I'll be there." Tom said standing as well. He walked her to the door. "Tomorrow at 7:00 PM."

"I'll see you then." Carol confirmed. She walked out of the office with a sincere smile on her face. As soon as the door closed behind her she took out her cell phone. Now, it was time to make some calls. She quickly dialed Richard's private cell phone number. She'd given that phone to Oliver so they could stay in touch. He picked up on the first ring.

"There's been a change in plans." Carol stated as she walked toward the hospital exit.

"Oh?" Oliver asked.

"Yes. Bonnie won't be coming for dinner tomorrow. She'll be out of town. You'll have to find another way to slip you're her your little hocus pocus potion."

Oliver swore out loud. He wanted Bonnie over for dinner so they could drug her food. He'd come up with a spell to make her powers unstable and thus allowing him the opportunity to steal them. The potion had to be ingested however. He needed to drug her.

"Where is she going?" Oliver demanded.

"A summer study trip with Alaric Saltzman."

"And just where is the local vampire hunter taking her?"

"All over the state, as I understand it." Carol said as she walked to her car in the parking lot. "They are going to visit local historical sites. They are ending in some po-dunk town in the Appalachians called Abingdon. I _hate_ mountains towns. I've never been there but I'd bet ¾ of the inhabitants are related and there isn't a dentist within 500 miles of the place."

"Abingdon?" Oliver repeated. "Are you sure that's the name of the town to which they are headed?"

"Positive. Why, you've heard of it?"

"No." Oliver lied. Of course he'd heard of Abingdon. The story of the fall of the Werewolves was well known to him. What he didn't know was why Bonnie was going there. Surely, it wasn't because of Tyler. He wouldn't go to that city, would he? It was run by vampires and they loath werewolves. As for Bonnie, vampires tolerate witches only as much as they need to. Bonnie won't be welcomed there either.

"Bonnie being away does change everything. Let me converse with Pearl. We'll form a new plan and discuss with you later." He snapped the cell phone shut and turned to Pearl, who was sitting at the table across the room.

The vampire looked haggard. The wounds she received from wolf Tyler still hadn't healed. The only thing keeping her alive was Oliver's magic potions, and even they were starting waned. With each passing day she became weaker and weaker. She didn't know how much time she had left, but she knew it wasn't much.

"Did I hear you mention Abingdon?" Pearl managed to ask.

"Yes, you did. It seems the Millennial Witch is headed that way." Oliver said joining Pearl at the table. "The question is why."

"You think it has something to do with the werewolf."

"Absolutely. That she would be heading to a place that hold such a special meaning to both vampires and werewolves can't be a coincidence."

"I agree." Pearl said.

"I'm glad because I need you to use your considerable influence among your people to send a special welcome party to meet Bonnie and her friends in Abingdon."

A sadistic smile played across Pearl's face. "I'll be happy to arrange that. I only wish I was healthy enough to join my fellow vampires in welcoming the witch to one of our most sacred cities."

"Soon Pearl, you will be restored to full health." Oliver assured her. "And I will once again have the powers of a Millennial With."

"And Carol Lockwood?" Pearl asked.

"We will do exactly what we told Carol we would do. We will find her son and punish Bonnie Bennett."

"But she doesn't know that the only way I can be healed is by draining the blood of the werewolf that bit me."

"Nor do I recommend you tell her that." Oliver said. "Ignorance is bliss in Carol Lockwood's case."

One of the maids appeared at the doorway and Pearl beckoned the woman closer. "Come human, help me up. There is much to be done." Pearl ordered.

"Remember Pearl," Oliver called out to her. "We need Bonnie and Tyler alive and relatively unharmed. The rest of the Scooby gang are expendable."

Meanwhile Carol sat down in the driver side seat of her car and pondered her next move. It didn't take long before she reopened her phone and quickly dialed a number she'd been calling so often these past few weeks.

"Hey Carol," a male voice husky greeted her.

"Mason, I have a lead on Tyler." Carol said urgently.

Mason Lockwood - Richard's younger brother and the black sheep of the family. During her 22 year married to Richard, Carol could count on 1 hand the number of times she'd seen her brother in law. Mason didn't make it to Mystic Falls often and her family certainly never ventured out to California to see the raven hair handsome surfer. However, with Richard's death and Tyler disappearance, Mason turned up to offer his support. Carol told him the best way he could do that was by finding Tyler for her. So he left and began his mission, with Carol funding his every move.

Mason was her ace in the whole, her surefire way of finding her son. Carol didn't trust Oliver and certainly not the vampire Pearl. She knew they were using her and once they were finished they'd leave her high and dry without a second thought. Mason was her way of ensuring her interests, namely finding Tyler, were taking priority. That is why Carol has been secretly funneling information to Mason about everything she found out.

"Really?" Mason asked. "What do you got?"

"A small town called Abingdon. The witch who cursed Tyler is heading there. I think she is going for a reason."

"Abingdon?" Tyler repeated. "Never heard of it. Where is it?"

"I am not certain, but I'm sure you can Google it. Just stop asking questions go check it out!" Carol insisted.

"I'll check it out Carol; I just don't want to enter into this situation blindly."

Carol sighed. "I understand Mason. I just want my son found."

"I'll find him Carol. I promise." Mason vowed. He hung up the phone and looked around his hotel room. He hated doing it, but he lied to Carol. He knew exactly where Abingdon was. Every werewolf did. It was hardwire into their genes or something. He should have guessed that is where Tyler would head not that he is a werewolf. He played stupid to pump Carol for as much information as he could. Satisfied she didn't know any more, he exited the call. Mason grabbed his knapsack and began to shove his belongings inside. He grabbed a small box from he desk and opened it up. He sighed in appreciation at the Moonstone. With his, he could break the curse and free Tyler from his nightmare. He had to find Tyler before anyone else did.

XOXOXOXOXO

"What do you mean I am not going?" Jeremy exclaimed.

"Guys, would you give us a moment?" Bonnie asked the rest of the group.

"Ah sure." Elena said tentatively. She turned to Stefan. "Come on. If you are going to be gone for the next two weeks I want the rest of the night with you alone." She grabbed his hand and they walked out of the kitchen.

"Come on Ric." Tim said clasping his hand on Ric's shoulder. "You can give me a ride home and I'll give you tips on working with an enchanted chain."

"I need tips?" Ric asked. He turned to Bonnie. "I'll be at your house at 7:00 AM. Be ready."

Bonnie nodded. "Ok."

"We'll both be there." Jeremy insisted.

Bonnie waited until everyone was out of the kitchen. She steeled herself for the inevitable argument she knew was coming from the moment she formed this plan.

"Jeremy, you can't go." Bonnie said quietly. "Besides the fact that you have a job-"

"Screw my job!" Jeremy yelled.

"It's too dangerous." Bobbie said resolutely.

"Like hell it is! Jeremy erupted. "The fact that it's dangerous is all the more reason I should go!"

"No way. Ric is the tracker, Stefan is the muscle and I am the power. That's it. The team is very small for a reason. I only asked those who are vital to go."

"So because I don't have any powers I am not vital to you?" Jeremy asked angrily.

"Of course not!" Bonnie said quickly. "You are absolutely vital to me and frankly that's part of the problem."

"What? That doesn't make any sense."

Bonnie took his hands into hers. "Jeremy, I struggle to focus when you are around me." Bonnie said bluntly. "I can't even watch a TV show with you without stealing quick glances at you. We are going into a very dangerous situation where being distracted could cost one or all of us or lives. How can I ask Stefan to put a chain around a werewolf whose smallest of nips could kill him knowing I would be distracted?"

"It doesn't have to be like that." Jeremy pleaded.

"What, am I supposed to fall less in love with you by 7:00 AM tomorrow morning when every other day I wake up more and more in love with you? Let's face it, baby, with you there, my focus isn't going to be on getting the job done, but make sure you are OK."

"This sucks." Jeremy said pulling her into an embrace. She could tell from the tone of his voice the argument was over and he was resigned not to go on the trip with her.

"I know." Bonnie said resting her head on his chest. "And I rather not spend our last night before I go arguing."

"Me neither." Jeremy agreed. He cupped her face with his hands a kissed her. The kiss started out pretty chaise, but quickly evolved into an passionate embrace. He broke the kiss and rubbed his nose gentle against her's.

"I love you." Jeremy murmured.

"I love you more." Bonnie cooed.

"Impossible!" Jeremy declared with elicited a slight laugh from Bonnie. "So, do you wanna…" Jeremy asked letting his voice trail off.

"Do you really have to ask?" Bonnie said with a guilty smile on her face.

Without any more words between them Jeremy hoisted Bonnie over his shoulder.

"Jeremy!" Bonnie cried laughing as he began to urgently make his out of the kitchen and into the living room where Stefan and Elena were seated.

"Don't mind us!" Jeremy said as Elena and Stefan chuckled. Jeremy booked up the stairs with Bonnie laughing hysterically all of the way.

"Those two seem excited." Stefan mused. He looked up as he heard the door to Jeremy's room slam.

"Maybe they have they have the right idea." Elena tittered as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I mean you are going to be gone for a while."

"Two whole weeks." Stefan confirmed leaning in to kiss her.

"So I am going to have to give you a reason to want to come home when this is all over."

"By all means." Stefan said the instant before their lips met and the two fell back into the couch.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

In the town of Abingdon, Wolf Tyler lifted his head from the mangled body beneath him and howled. His black fur glistened with red blood of his victim. The vampire beneath struggled weakly to get away. Tyler growled baring his impressive fangs. He then lowered his head with his jaws opened and put the entire head of the vampire into his mouth. With a savage twist of his powerful neck muscle, Tyler ripped the head clean off of the vampire. He tossed the head away and it landed a few feet away.

Tyler howled again. This time he howl was echoed by another. First one, then two and then more until they were running together, impossible to tell apart. Tyler howled again, this time in appreciation.

His pack had arrived.

END CHAPTER

So that is Chapter 2! It kind of sets the stage and provides background for what's coming up next!

Next up the gang is in for some surprises when the reach Abingdon! Tim and Jeremy learn a bit more about each othe and Damon forms a dangerous alliance.

Please read and review!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sooo… SORRY for the super long delay. Life happens and I had to put the story on the back burner for a while. But let me tell you, that kiss on the episode two weeks ago ignited my fire. And as the FRIST person to post a Bonnie/Jeremy fic on , I just had to keep it moving. I promise with all of my heart the chapter will not take me nearly as long to write!

Anyhoo – thanks to all of those who have reviewed the Hunted. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Now, on to the story!

XOXOXOOX

Chapter 3:

"This is criminal." Bonnie announced as she got into the back seat of Alaric's car. She was wearing jeans, a tee shirt and baseball cap. "No one should be up and ready to go at 7:00 AM during their summer vacation."

"Come on, Bonnie. It's not that bad." Alaric said from the driver's seat.

"You sound almost chipper, Ric." Bonnie said pulling her cap down lower on her face. "Don't tell me you're a morning person."

"Alright, I won't tell you." Ric joked. He looked in rearview mirror as the car shook from the trunk being closed. Shortly thereafter the door opened and Stefan slid into the passenger seat.

"Her bags are in the trunk. We are ready to go." Stefan told them.

"You hear that Bonnie? We are ready to rock and roll." Ric said.

"Good. Let's get this show on the road." Bonnie leaned her head on the back the headrest. "Wake me when we reach Abingdon." She closed her eyes and ignored their chatter until she drifted off to sleep. Bonnie next awoke to Stefan gently calling her name.

"Bonnie, wake up."

"Huh?" Bonnie responded groggily. She opened her eyes and lifted her hand to block the bright sunlight. She straightened herself out in the backseat. "Are we there already? What time is it?"

"About 9:30 AM" Stefan replied.

"Is something wrong?" Bonnie asked looking around.

"No." Alaric said pulling into the parking lot of a small diner. "I was hungry so we decided to stop for breakfast."

"Oh. OK." Bonnie said unbuckling her seat belt. She tossed her cap on the seat and ran her finger through her hair.

"You looked so peaceful sleeping back there that I suggested leaving you in the car, but Stefan here insisted that we wake you and least give you the option to join us inside of," Alaric paused as he looked up to the read the name of the establishment. "Ma and Pa's Diner," Ric joked.

"Well thanks for thinking of me, Stefan." Bonnie replied as they all exited the car. "As for you," she said wagging her finger at Ric, "you better watch it. It's too early in this trip for you to get on my bad side."

"Bad side?" Ric repeated. He held the door open to the diner for the others to enter. "What did I do to get on your bad side? Oh, did I forget to tell you I was going to crack a window on the car so you can breathe? I'm not heartless."

Bonnie and Stefan chuckled. "What I am, a poodle?" Bonnie asked.

"No," Alaric said shaking his head. They stood in the lobby, waiting to be seated. "Those are vicious and ugly dogs, in my opinion. If I had to envision you as a dog, I'd say you are a cute little cocker spaniel, you know like Lady, from Lady and the Tramp." Ric was smiling as he stood in front of her. "I can just see you with silky brown fur and big floppy ears." He said as he took his hands and mussed her hair.

"Ric!" Bonnie exclaimed laughing as she swatted his hand away. "Stop that!"

"Will it be three?" A hostess asked, coming from the back of the restaurant.

"Yes." Stefan said still smiling at Ric's silliness.

"Follow me." The young woman said. She led the trio to a table and gave the menus. "Tricia is your server and she will be right with y'all."

They all sat down and Bonnie and Stefan opened their menus. Stefan noticed Ric didn't touch his.

"Aren't you eating?" Stefan asked. "We stopped because you said you were hungry."

"I am, but I already know what I am getting." Ric answered.

"You've been here before?" Bonnie asked lowering her menu.

"No, but all of these places are all the same." Ric replied. "I'll get whatever they call their version of scrambled eggs, hash browns, pancakes and bacon. All diners have a version of it."

"Spoken like a man who's spent a lot of time in diners." Stefan said.

"When Isobel was murdered, or at least when I thought she was murdered, I went looking for the vampire that did I thought killed her. I spent a lot of time driving all over the United States. That meant I spent a lot of time in diners just like this all over the country."

"That must have been very lonely." Bonnie said setting her menu down.

Ric shrugged. "It wasn't at the time. I was so obsessed with avenging her death; I didn't take the time to deal with the emotional baggage that it caused. It was easier to be angry at her killer then to deal with the pain of losing her."

Before Ric could continue the server arrived and asked to take their order. She set three waters on the table as they ordered. Ric went first and they did indeed have what he was looking for. It was called Pa's Plate at this restaurant. Bonnie ordered pancakes with a side of fresh fruit and Stefan got French toast. His cell phone went off right as he finished ordered. He took it out of his pocket and looked at it.

"This is Elena." Stefan announced standing. "Excuse me." He politely said walking away. Once he walked away Ric unscrewed the top to the salt and poured it in Stefan's drink. He picked up and his knife and stirred the water.

"I didn't know you were such a jokester." Bonnie commented smiling.

"That's because we really don't know each other that well." Ric replied.

Bonnie tilted her head. "You don't think so?"

Alaric shook his head no. "Think about how we met. We were immediately thrust into a crisis and since then we've only come together for one problem situation after another. There hasn't been time for us develop any type of normal relationship. We only really talk to each in times of tribulation."

Bonnie pondered his words for a second. "You're right." she said finally. "I guess I never really thought about it."

"So, tell me all there is to know about Bonnie Bennett." Ric said taking a drink of his water.

Bonnie laughed at the question. "I wouldn't even know when to begin! Besides, I'd much rather hear the about the life and times of Alaric Salzmann."

"That's a long story." Ric said leaning back in his chair.

"It's a good thing we have about 5 more hours in the car. That should give you plenty of time to tell me all about you." Bonnie said smiling.

"Some parts may be pretty boring." Ric explained.

"You can skip over those parts." Bonnie said waiving her hand. "Just don't leave out any embarrassing stories!"

"Leave them out?" Ric asked with mock insult in his voice. "Embarrassing stories are the best part!"

"I am sure yours are awesome!" Bonnie giggled. Before they could continue the conversation Stefan returned to the table.

"Elena says hello to both of you." Stefan said sitting down.

"How is she?" Ric asked.

"She's fine." Stefan said. "She'll be sending you a text Bonnie to make sure you keep me in line."

Bonnie smiled. "Do you ever really get out of line, Stefan?"

"What's that's supposed to mean?" Stefan asked as the reached for his water glass." Alaric sat up in his chair in anticipation of Stefan drinking the tainted beverage.

"I mean you're a good guy." Bonnie chimed in earning her an annoyed glance from Ric. "Alaric and I were just talking about the fact that we don't really know each other that well, but I do know this one thing about you: I can count on you to do the right thing."

Stefan paused and tilted his head at Bonnie. "Thanks, I think."

"Oh, that was absolutely a compliment!" Bonnie said quickly. "You are awesome at putting aside your personal feeling and doing the right thing."

"You know what else I am good at?" Stefan asked. He picked up his water glass again as if to drink it. Alaric moved to edge of seat in anticipation of Stefan drinking the tainted beverage. Stefan took the cup to his lips and stopped. "I'm good at smelling salt in my drink." He said with a mischievous smile.

"Awe come on man!" Ric said with playful frustration. He looked a Bonnie. "You just had to keep on yammering on, didn't you?"

"Don't blame me!" Bonnie said vehemently. "You couldn't be any more obvious waiting Stefan to drink from that glass."

"You two are going to have to do better than that to get me." Stefan said.

"That sounds like a challenge." Ric said. "You don't think we can pull a prank on you?"

"I'm not an easy mark." Stefan replied. He picked up Ric's glass and sipped his water.

"I think we can get you." Ric said. "We should make a bet."

"Think before you speak, Ric." Stefan said. "I'm a vampire. I have enhanced senses and strength. It won't be easy to do what you are proposing."

"We're not scared, are we Bonnie?"

"Don't rope me into your little games." Bonnie said shaking her head.

"You're already in this." Ric said. "We bet you that we can pull a prank on you before we leave Abingdon. The loser has to pay for dinner for us and our dates when we get back to Mystic Falls. The winner will choose the restaurant." He held out his hand and Stefan shook it.

"Deal." Stefan said.

"What did you just do?" Bonnie asked Ric.

"Made this trip a whole lot more interesting." Ric answered.

XOXOXOXOXO

Tim strode confidently into Mystic Grille. He walked over to the bar and set his notebook and phone on it before smiling at the petite blond bartender. She returned the gesture with much enthusiasm. Tim was the hottest thing to come into the restaurant since her shift began 4 hours ago at 5:00 PM.

"Hi there," she said giving him her best come hither look. "What can I get for you?"

"I am actually here to pick up dinner. I called in an order for Tim." the witch replied purposely accentuating his with his southern twang.

"Yeah, I remember." The blond replied. "I got it right here." She said picking up a bag from under a heat lamp. "It was the grilled chicken sandwich, right?

"Yes, that's it. Thank you." Tim said reaching in the back pocket of his khaki shorts for his wallet.

"So polite!" the bartender complimented him. She rang his food up at the register. "It must be your southern upbringing. That'll be $13.50. Where are you from?"

"I am from Georgia, and my mother always did tell me to treat a lady with respect." Tim answered. He handed the woman a $20.00 bill.

"I've been to Atlanta." The woman said getting his change. "It was fun." She turned around and put his money on the counter.

"I grew up in a town not far from Atlanta. I loved it there." Tim said. He took his change and left a $3.00 tip for the bartender. "You have a good night." He said as he began to gather his belongings.

"You don't have to rush off, do you? Let me get you a drink."

"Oh thank you, but I don't want my food to get cold."

"Just one drink," the girl insisted. "I'll even buy. Now you can't say no because it'd be rude and you are much too polite for that."

Tim chuckled at the statement. "It would be my pleasure to have a drink with such a charming lady as yourself." He said down at the bar stool. "Can you have one as well? I don't know the rules of this particular restaurant."

"Well, not officially, but I drink all of the time. My name is Becky, by the way."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Becky. I am-"

"Tim, I know." Becky cut him off. "What are you drinking, Tim?"

"How about a Jack and Coke?" Tim asked.

"One Jack and Coke coming up," Becky said. "So you are fairly new around here." It wasn't a question, but more of an observation.

"Yes." Tim replied. "But it sounds like you know everyone in this town."

"Mystic Falls born and raised," Becky said proudly. She set the drink down in front of him. "This is the best Jack and Coke you will ever have."

"Is that so?" Tim said amused. He took a sip of the drink. "This is rather tasty."

"So you like it?" Becky asked.

"I do." Tim said nodding.

"Do you see anything else you like?" Becky said with coy smile and a low voice.

Tim looked up, surprised at her forward question. Before he could answer a figured appeared next to him at the bar.

"Jeremy!" Tim exclaimed, happy to see the young man. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey Tim," Jeremy greeted him. He was still dressed in his coveralls from the auto shop. "I came to grab a bite to eat after work with a couple of co-workers.

"Excuse us, Becky. I'm just going to catch up with my friend."

"Oh yeah, no problem!" Becky said quickly. "I got other customers that are waiting on drinks. I'm sure I'll see you around though."

"Most likely," Tim replied. The bartender walked away and Tim let out a relieved sigh. "I am very glad to see you Jeremy."

"Really?" Jeremy didn't try to hide his surprise. "I saw you when you came in and I would have come over earlier but it looked like you were getting food to go. Then you sat down and so I decided to invite you to join us."

"Well I am glad you did. Becky was giving me the full court press." Tim said.

Jeremy looked at the bartender and then back to Tim. "She's cute. What's wrong, not your type?"

"You could say that." Tim said. "She came on too strong."

Jeremy chuckled. "Maybe she just wanted to be sure you got the impression she liked me."

"Oh I got that impression alright and more." Tim said. "She came across hornier that two-dick Billy Goat. It wasn't attractive." Jeremy let out a surprised burst of laughter. "What, you've never heard that before?"

"No way man." Jeremy said still laughing.

"Oh I have a bunch of sayings like that. Colloquialisms are a major part of my proud southern heritage." Tim said picking up his bag. He reached for his notebook and phone.

"Well, why don't you and your proud southern heritage come join Bernice and Shelly and me at our table? No reason for you to eat alone."

Tim considered the invitation for a second. Did he really want to spend his evening with Jeremy Gilbert? "I don't know. I am pretty tired."

"Pretty tired from what?" Jeremy asked. "You don't have a job. I don't know what you do all day."

"Hey watch it now. I spent most of my day today in the library trying to find out more history on the werewolf curse. This entire notebook if filled with my research." Tim sat patting the spiral notebook on top of the bar.

"Why are you researching the curse? Shouldn't you be focused writing a spell that can break it?" Jeremy asked.

"The more I know about the curse the better chance I have of writing a spell that can break it. I was so busy doing that that I am just now getting dinner and it's 9:00 PM!"

"All the more reason I say you should join is. I know I am not exactly your favorite person but hanging out with me has got to be better than eating alone."

"Who says you are not my favorite person?" Tim asked.

"Lately you've been acting really weird whenever I am around. I figure it's because you don't like me for some reason."

"And yet you still want me to join you for dinner?" Tim asked.

"You're important to Bonnie. She's important to me. It's the least I can do is try to get along with you so you can get over whatever it is you have against me."

"I don't have anything against you, Jeremy." Tim replied.

"Then why are you so awkward around me?" Jeremy pressed him.

"Can we just change the subject?" Tim asked exasperated.

"Fine. You joining us for dinner or not?" Jeremy relented.

"Why not? It is better then eating alone. Besides, it'll give me a chance to scope out Bonnie's competition. Does she know you are eating dinner with not one, but two ladies?" Tim asked with humor in his voice.

"You've obviously never met Bernice or Shelly." Jeremy said with an amused look on his face. "Trust me; there is nothing to worry about."

"It doesn't matter if they are both uglier than a sack of assholes." Tim said smiling. Jeremy howled in laughter. "As a matter of fact, I contend we have to more concerned about the ugly ones because they are willing to do more to get you!"

Jeremy put his hand on Tim's shoulder. "You gotta stop, man." He said trying to catch his breath. "Personally, I don't think either girl is cute or could even hold a candle to Bonnie, but that's not what I meant." He took Tim and physically turned him to face the table with the two women in question.

Bernice was a large woman with flannel sleeveless shirt, cut off blue jean shorts and a mullet. Shelly wasn't as large but she was covered in tattoos. The intricate designs visible everywhere her bare flesh was exposed, save her face.

"Bernice and Shelly are a couple." Jeremy announced.

"What?" Tim asked taken back.

"They're gay." Jeremy clarified. "Come on. There's nothing to worry about. I'm sure you'll fit right in."

"What's that supposed to mean? I can't believe you just said that to me!" Tim yelled. "Go fuck yourself, Jeremy!" He grabbed his bag of food and stormed out of the restaurant.

"What the hell just happened?" Jeremy asked himself out loud. He looked around bewildered, trying to determine why Tim just lost it. "Oh just great." Jeremy said as he realized Tim left his notebook on the counter. He grabbed the book and walked back to his table.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO

"Hi Jeremy!" Bonnie said excitedly when he picked up her call.

"Hey Bonnie. Is something up?" Jeremy asked briskly.

"No why?" Bonnie asked sweetly. She knew he was at work and could hear the other mechanics in the background.

"Well because we just talked ½ hour ago when I was on lunch." Jeremy said. "It's pretty busy here today so I don't have a lot of time to talk."

"I know." Bonnie admitted. "It's just that I'm so bored. Stefan and Alaric left me in the hotel room all alone again today. But I know you are busy and I won't keep you. Sorry to bother you."

"You're not bothering me." Jeremy said. "I always love to hear from you and wish we could talk more but I do have a lot to get done." Jeremy paused for a second. He didn't want to get off the phone with Bonnie without trying to help. "Why don't you call Elena or Caroline?" he suggested.

"I tried calling them already." Bonnie said. "They are volunteering together at some elderly day camp."

"Oh, well what about-"

"Jeremy – stop." Bonnie said. "This is my problem to solve. I shouldn't have called you. I knew you were at work. It was selfish of me. Besides, I already feel better just hearing your voice."

"Are you sure you are OK?" Jeremy asked.

"Jeremy, I'm bored – not in danger. Call me tonight when you get off work."

"Yeah, of course. Bonnie?" Jeremy called out.

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"I love you more." Bonnie said before they both hung up. Oh how she loved that man.

Bonnie tossed her cell phone on the night stand before flopping restlessly on the bed in her motel room. She looked at the ceiling in a mixture of boredom and frustration. They'd been in Abingdon three days without any sign of Tyler. They checked everywhere they thought he might be with no luck. Who would have thought a giant werewolf would be so hard to find? Yesterday, Ric stated they needed to start checking some of the more high risk places. He insisted that Bonnie stay behind in the hotel room for her safety. She objected, but when Stefan sided with Ric she knew she didn't have a choice.

"This is so stupid." Bonnie muttered. "And it's not like they found anything anyway." She was correct. Stefan and Alaric returned yesterday with nothing to show for their efforts. In the morning they set out again to find whatever clues to Tyler's location they could and again they insisted that Bonnie stay behind.

So for the second day in a row Bonnie say alone in the motel room. "At the very least this place could have a pool." Bonne said in reference to the 2 star motel in which they were staying. It wasn't glamorous and it certainly didn't have all of the luxuries of home. The sparse room housed a bed, a desk with a lamp and a TV that just got the basic channels. The bathroom was small and cramped and the water pressure was a joke. She recalled Ric's words upon seeing her face when she unlocked the door to her room. "At least it's clean." Ric told her as he helped her with her bags.

"At least it's clean." Bonnie murmured. Her phone buzzed and she lounged for it with much excitement. She looked it and sighed. It was a text from Stefan saying they hadn't found anything yet and they won't be back for lunch.

"And they probably won't find anything again today." Bonnie mumbled. She already figured they weren't coming back for lunch since it was already 1:30 in the afternoon. As if on cue, her stomach growled. She was hungry.

There was a George Webb's a few blocks from her motel. She had dinner there last night with Stefan and Ric. She also noticed a cute little boutique across the street from the restaurant. It was gorgeous outside, the perfect day for a walk. If the boys weren't coming back for lunch she would have to go out and get something to eat.

Bonnie grabbed her purse and phone and headed for the door. It was a short, but lovely walk to the restaurant. She ordered the chicken fingers and ate the alone in silence. She paid her bill and made her way across the street to the boutique. It turned out to be an antique shop. She entered curious about what she would find inside.

She opened the door and started to move forward when she was suddenly yanked back.

"Oh!" Bonnie cried out as she stumbled backwards.

"Careful!" A strong, deep male voice warned her. A pair of masculine hands caught her around the shoulders and stopped her from tumbling to the floor.

Bonnie turned to see a male Adonis in front of her. She caught her breath. The man who caught her was gorgeous. Broad strapping shoulders, dark curly hair and deep soulful eyes.

"Are you ok?" the man asked her.

"Uh yeah," Bonnie stammered. "I am not sure what happened there.

"It looks like your purse got caught on the door." The man explained. He unlatched the purse from the door and handed it to her. "I am guessing when I opened the door you got pulled back."

"Well thanks for catching me." Bonnie said.

"My pleasure. Besides, it was partly my fault that you were falling." the man shrugged. "And it's not every day a beautiful woman falls into my arms."

"Oh brother." Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Does that line really work?"

"It's not line. You're a woman, you're beautiful and you literally fell into my arms."

Bonnie looked at him and shook her head. Better end this now. "Thanks again and enjoy your day." Bonnie said turning to walk away from the stranger.

"You don't even want to know my name?" he called out as she walked away.

"No need." Bonnie replied.

"Well I want to know yours." he said rushing to catch up with her.

"Why?" Bonnie asked looking at some brass bells on the shelf.

"I don't know. How about because exchanging names is the polite thing to do?" The stranger said.

"Who said I'm polite?" Bonnie questioned still not looking at the man.

"Mason." he said.

"What?" Bonnie asked finally looking at him.

"My name is Mason." he said holding out his hand.

"Oh." Bonnie said returning her attention to bells on the shelf but not shaking his hand.

"Wow. I don't even warrant a hand shake? I'm bringing my "A" game here."

"Look, Mason," Bonnie began in a no nonsense tone. It was time to end this conversation by playing the boyfriend card. "I'm flattered, really I am, but I've got a-"

She never finished her statement. Mason's hand brushed against the bare flesh of her arm. Her psychic powers kicked in and a vision flashed in her mind. But the image she saw! It couldn't be. She took a moment to absorb it all.

"Are you ok?" Mason asked concerned about her abrupt stop.

"I'm, I'm fine." Bonnie stammered still trying to process the vision she seen. "I just heard myself and realized how rude I was being. I am sorry about that. Sometimes I can be a bit of an ice queen." Bonnie lied.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Mason asked. Bonnie looked shaky and all of the color had drained from her face.

"I'm ok, really." Bonnie insisted.

"Listen, I can take a hint. I may not like it, but it's pretty clear you want me to leave you alone." Mason said as he turned to walk away from Bonnie.

"Mason wait!" Bonnie called out after him. She just couldn't let him walk way – not after what she seen. Mason turned to face her, but didn't move closer. She walked toward him. "I'm sorry for being such bitch to you. I had an awful morning and I took it out on you."

"It's OK." Mason shrugged.

"But it wasn't fair. Can we start over?" Bonnie asked with a sweet smile. She stuck her hand out towards Mason. "I'm Bonnie."

He took it and shook. "It's nice to meet you, Bonnie." Mason said matching her smile.

"Wow, break my hand much!" Bonnie exclaimed. She shook her hand after he released it.

"Sorry!" Mason said pulling his hand back quickly. "Sometimes I forget my own strength."

"You're really strong!" Bonnie gushed. She looked at Mason and giggled. "Did I really just say that? How cheesy! Especially after I gave you crap for throwing bad lines my way!"

Mason chuckled. "I didn't hurt your hand, did I?"

"No, it's fine." Bonnie said. "I should be able to move my fingers again in a couple of days." Bonnie joked. They began to wonder through the antique store. "So I'm curious," Bonnie began.

"About?" Mason prompted.

"What's a big strapping fella like you doing in a dainty little antique store like this?" Bonnie asked smiling. "Shopping for the special lady in your life?"

"Doing a little fishing, are you?" Mason asked. "Trying to see if I have girlfriend?"

"Well you were coming on pretty strong." Bonnie said as she picked a crystal elephant off of the shelf. "And I don't know you that well. I don't know you at all, as a matter of fact. For all I know this could be how you spend all of your Wednesdays afternoons."

"Let me clarify for you, Bonnie. I don't spend my time picking up random women in antique shops. I entered here because I saw you crossing the street.

"What?" Bonnie asked putting the elephant back on the shelf and turning to face him.

"I saw you when you were leaving the George Webb's. You hurried across the street and you were the most beautiful woman that I'd had ever seen."

"Stop it." Bonnie said looking turning back to the shelf. Mason reached out and gently turned her back to face him.

"You don't believe me?" he asked. "You were so beautiful crossing the street that I knew I would regret it if I didn't at least try to meet you so I followed you in here. I was thinking about what I would say to you when I opened the door to the shop and you literal fell into my arms. I took that as a sign."

It was only when Bonnie exhaled that she realized she was holding her breath. Why would she be doing that? She knew why. Mason was so captivating. When he spoke, there was an intensity that made Bonnie feel like she was the only person in the world.

"Wow. That's way more of an answer than I was expecting." Bonnie said.

Mason shrugged. "I've learned to go for what I want. If I get shot down, so what. At least I tried."

"That's a very gung ho type of attitude." Bonnie said as she resumed walking through the store. Mason followed.

"I'm a carpe diem type of guy." Mason responded. His phone rang and he took it out of his pocket and swore under his breath. "Bonnie, I have to take this and it's probably going to be a while. Could we meet up later, for dinner?"

Bonnie arched an eyebrow and looked at him. "You're asking me out on a date?"

"I'm seizing the day." Mason said with a charming smile. "Let me see your phone." he ordered. Bonnie fished it out of her purse and handed it to him. "This is my number." He said entering it into her Driod. "If you want to meet up for dinner, call me and well figure out a time and place. If not, well at least I tried." He handed her back her phone. "Hopefully I'll see you later."

"Maybe you will." Bonnie said as she put the phone back in her purse. Intrigued, she watched Mason walk out of the store.

Once outside Mason answered the call. "Hello."

"Mason, it's me." Carol Lockwood stated. "Has there been any progress?"

"Yeah, actually." Mason reported. "Your call interrupted me as I was following the best lead on finding Tyler."

"What lead is that?" Carol asked urgently.

"I don't have time to go into details now, Carol. Trust me and know that I am doing everything in my power to bring your boy home safely." Mason hung up the phone. He had to get ready for tonight.

He knew who Bonnie was the instant he saw her. She didn't quite fit the description Carol had given him. When Carol told him she was a witch he expected green skin and wart. To better prepare himself he checked her out on Tyler Facebook page. Their prom picture was on of Tyler's profile picture. She was gorgeous in the picture but even lovelier in person. So small and petite, Mason had trouble imaging so much power could be in Bonnie's lithe body, but according to Carol she was a real powerhouse.

He didn't doubt for a second Bonnie would call him. At first he wasn't sure, but by the end of their conversation he could tell she was feeling him and if he was honest he was more than a little attracted to her. She seemed to be the total package: beauty, brains and power. She was a little young, but nothing obscene. If he was lucky, he would find his nephew and end up with a new lady friend to boot.

XOXOXOXOXO

Damon sat on the bench in Mystic Fall Park waiting. He hated waiting. Damon was more of a do first and think later type of guy. Waiting wasn't a part of his make up. Even when he was human, he was an impatient person. Becoming a vampire only exacerbated that imperfection. He wanted to take action now, but his new plan forced him to wait. It did not put him in a good mood.

Fortunately for the general population of Mystic Falls, the park was the last place many would think to go. It wasn't because of the weather. It was a balmy 77°. There was slight breeze making the night near perfect. No, the residents of this town avoided the park at dusk for one simple reason: mosquitoes. A particularly wet spring resulted in Mystic Falls dealing with the worst mosquito infested summer in recent memory. They over ran the park and they were at their worst at dusk.

Damon however sat unconcerned about the fellow bloodsuckers. They didn't bother him at all. Damon didn't know if it was honor among like creatures or what, but they didn't try to bite him.

"It's because of your low body temperature, not because you are some kind of kindred spirits." A woman said approaching Damon.

"Listen lady, I don't have any spare change so keep moving." Damon said flippantly.

"Do I look like a pan handler to you?" the woman challenged Damon. He eyed her up and down.

She was quite attractive, really. The woman was an African American in her late thirties. Although only 5'3", she still managed to have a commanding presence. Her white sleeveless shirt and black shirts were neatly pressed and certainly clean. She wore the latest wedge sandals and short jet black hair stylishly framed her face.

"You look like a moron for bother me. Now why don't you get out of here while I am still feeling charitable?" Damon snapped.

"You vampires are always so temperamental." the woman said sitting across from him at the picnic table. "You requested this meeting with me."

Damon eyed her suspiciously. "I find that hard to believe since we've never met and I didn't call any meeting."

"And yet, here you are." The woman said.

Damon started at her. She put her hands on her hips and matched his stare.

"Well?" She said expectantly.

"Well why haven't I killed you yet?" Damon asked. "I'm not certain."

"I'm going to have to spell it out for you, aren't I?" the lady said with annoyance in her voice. "You put the word out that you were looking for witch to perform a particular spell for you. Since most of my kind hates vampires with a passion, no one was willing to help. You, in particular, Damon Salvatore have a nasty reputation among the supernatural for using people who then end up dead. I however, like living dangerously so I answered you mystic want ad."

"So that long speech was to tell me you're a witch?" Damon questioned with sarcasm.

"I thought that little mind reading bit I did when I first came up to you was enough to prove it. I guess you aren't as smart as I thought you would be. Don't worry. I'll dumb it down for you in the future."

"You didn't read my mind." Damon said defiantly.

"Yes, I did Baby." The woman got up and walked around the table. "You were wondering why the mosquitoes aren't bothering you. You had the dumb idea it might be because you are kindred blood sucking spirits. It's not. The mosquitoes aren't bothering you because as a vampire you're dead. That means no body heat and you don't breathe. Mosquitoes are follow body heat and exhaled gases and fly to their target."

"I thought you were a witch, not Dr. Doolittle."

"Well you're just a bag of sunshine, aren't you?"

"Look Lady-"

"My name is Michelle, Damon."

"Like I care. Why are you here?" Damon snapped.

"Are you deaf or stupid?" Michelle asked. "I told you, you need a witch and I am here to offer my services."

"If I am so dangerous, why are you volunteering to help?" Damon asked.

"I have my reasons." Michelle answered.

"Which are?" Damon pressed.

"My own business." Michelle replied.

"Not good enough." Damon said. "Tell me why you are here or leave."

"You are awful snappy for a guy needing my help." Michelle observed.

"Who said I need your help?" Damon said. "You show up out of nowhere offering to be my fairy witch mother and I'm supposed to believe you?"

"Look," Michelle said clearly at the end of her patience. "Do you want my services or not?"

"Or not." Damon said as he began to walk way.

"Fine! I need your help!" Michelle called out after him. Damon turned to face her.

"Why would you think I would possible help you?"

"Because one good turn deserves another. I will cast the spell you want and you need to get me access to Shelia Bennett's house."

"Shelia Bennett?" Damon repeated the name as he tried to recall why he knew it. Then it hit him. "Bonnie's grandmother?"

"I don't know Bonnie so I can't answer that." Michelle stated.

"Why do you want access to that house?"

"I don't suppose you'll drop it if I tell you it's personal?"

"Not a chance, witch." Damon replied.

"Fine. Shelia was a witch par excellence. She had quite the collection of arcane artifacts. Now that she has passed away would like to get my hands on some of her stuff."

"All that stuff belongs to her granddaughter now. Why not ask her?"

"Because I doubt she'll give it up. Actually, I doubt she even knows what half of that stuff is. But if I get in there now, I can take it before she even knows it missing."

"You're nothing but a common thief." Damon quipped.

"And you're a murdering vampire." Michelle snapped. "Now are we going to trade insults all night or do we have a deal?" Michelle stuck out her hand.

Damon considered the offer for a few moments. Then he reached out and took her hand in his.

"Deal." Damon said. He suddenly snatched Michelle forward so that she was much closer to him. She let out a surprised gasped at his sudden jerk. "If you hurt Bonnie in any way, now or in the future, I will kill you."

Michelle pushed against Damon's chest to distance herself from him. "I already told you I don't know who this Bonnie character is. I just want to get in Shelia's house, collect a few things and go back to where I came from. That's all."

"I'm holding you to that." Damon said.

"That's fine. Now, I've told you my dirty secrets. Time to share yours. What exactly is it you need me to do for you, Mr. Salvatore?"

"I need you to cast a love spell for me."

XOXOXOXOXO

"What took you guys so long?" Bonnie asked Ric as Stefan as she stepped out of the bathroom of her motel room wearing a robe with a towel wrapped around her hair. "I called you hours ago."

"We were on the hunt." Ric said. They looked like it. Both men were haggard and worn down. Their jeans were had grass stains on their knees.

"And what did you find?" Bonnie asked as she riffled through the shopping bags that were on the side of her bed.

"Vampire remains, actually." Stefan answered. Bonnie's head whipped around.

"What did you say?"

"We found the remains of a vampire that had been decapitated." Stefan elaborated. "His head had literally been ripped off."

"Actually we found the remains of several vampires." Ric added. "All of them had been hunted and killed by a wild animal."

"Tyler." Bonnie surmised.

"It looks that way." Stefan confirmed. "Stefan and I think we found the spot where he brings his fresh kills."

"His den, so to speak." Ric said.

"You make him sound like a wild animal." Bonnie said defensively.

"Bonnie, that's what he is now." Stefan said. "We don't know if your spell allowed him to retain any of his humanity, or if he is all wolf now. For the safety of us all, we have to assume the worst and act accordingly."

"Well this is just depressing." Bonnie said sitting on the bed."

"But wait, it gets better." Ric informed her. "We don't think he's acting alone. The bite marks we saw on the bones are from more than one animal."

"You think we are dealing with another werewolf?" Bonnie asked.

"We don't know for sure." Stefan answered. "The additional bite marks could have been made another animal after the vampire was already dead."

"Wow. This is a lot to absorb." She looked at Stefan. "I take you didn't actually see Tyler."

"No, we didn't." Stefan answered her.

"And I am kind of glad we didn't." Ric said. "I think we underestimated how powerful he really is."

"Why?" Bonnie asked confused.

"Bonnie, you didn't see those bones. He ripped through them as though they were nothing. And if he is working in conjunction with another werewolf, it changes everything."

"So what are you suggesting, Ric? We give up and go home?" Bonnie asked.

"I'm not saying that, especially when we are this close to actually finding him. Tyler needs our help, but I am saying to help Tyler, we need some help, namely Damon."

"You want to call in reinforcements already?" Stefan asked.

"Yes!" Ric said emphatically. "Stefan, you saw those remains. Tyler is an animal. Do you really think you can handle him on his own?"

"But Damon? He won't want to help Tyler. He'll want to kill him." Bonnie answered.

"I agree." Stefan concurred. "Besides, I won't be on my own." Stefan said.

"That's right. We'll be there to help." Bonnie added.

"I am saying I don't think the three of us are enough." Ric argued.

"More help may be closer than you think." Bonnie said. "Don't you want to know the reason I was texting you earlier."

"I talked to Elena." Stefan said. "She said you were calling everyone you knew just for something to day. I assumed you were calling us because you were bored."

"Looks like you decided to pass the time by shopping." Ric said motioning towards her bags.

"Hardly." Bonnie said. "I went out for lunch and I ran into someone who may be connected to this whole situation. His name is Mason. He knows Tyler."

"How do you know?" Stefan asked.

"Well after lunch I went into that antique store that is across the street. I literally ran into Mason. He tried hitting on me and when I was about to shut him down, I got a vision."

"What did you see?" Ric asked.

"The Lockwoods. All of them. Richard, Carol, Tyler and Mason. They were at the mansion having lunch. But it wasn't that recent. Tyler was younger. I'd say it was about 5 years ago."

"So the plot thickens. Who is Mason and how does he fit into all of this?" Ric asked

"I don't know, but I am going to dinner with him tonight to find out." Bonnie said. She began rifling through her bags again.

"You're kidding right?" Ric said.

"No, I am not." Bonnie replied. "Found it!" She exclaimed pulling up the bag she was looking for. "You know of a better way to get information out of Mason?"

"Bonnie, this is clearly a trap." Stefan said gently.

"I don't actually think it is, but I have that covered too. Both of you are coming too." Bonnie replied.

"That won't look the least bit suspicious." Ric replied sarcastically.

"We won't all be together." Bonnie explained. "I want you to arrive before me and sit at a separate table. That way you will be there in case anything jumps off."

"Meanwhile you'll be enjoying a romantic dinner with Mason?" Ric question with doubt clear in the tone of his voice.

"Meanwhile I'll pump Mason for as much information as I can about his connection to Tyler." Bonnie clarified.

"You realize he may want to get as much info from you as he can as well." Stefan said.

"I know. I'll be careful about what I say." Bonnie agreed.

"So when is this date anyway?" Ric asked.

"Let's find out." Bonnie said. She reached for her cell phone and dialed Mason's number. She out the phone on speaker and set it down on the bed. She motioned for Ric and Stefan to be quiet.

"Hello?" Mason's baritone voice answered.

"Mason? It's Bonnie."

"I was hoping you call. It was getting late and I thought maybe you decided against it."

"It took me a while to make up my mind." Bonnie lied. "Then I realized I was getting ready for a date that I hadn't even agreed to go on and I decided I better call you."

"I am glad you did. I've been thinking about you all afternoon."

"You just met me. What's there to think about?" Bonnie asked.

"You're smile, your eyes, your laughter – should I go on?"

"Mason!" Bonnie squealed. "You shouldn't talk that way!"

"It's the truth. I can't wait to see you tonight."

"Speaking of tonight, what's the plan?" Bonnie asked.

"Do you like Italian food? There is this great little bistro that I know. You'll love it. That's if you like Italian food."

"I do." Bonnie said. "Like Italian food, that is."

"Awesome! You'll love this place, I promise. Where are you staying? I can come pick you up."

"Um, how about we just meet at the restaurant?" Bonnie suggested.

"Playing it safe, I can respect that." Mason said. "Let me give you the name and the address. Got a pen?"

"Ready!" Bonnie said as she grabbed it off of the night stand. Mason gave the info and Bonnie scribbled it down. "I got it all." Bonnie as he finished talking. "What do you say we meet there at 8:00 PM?"

"I say that's two hours from now and I don't know if I can wait that long."

"You'll have too. I need time to finish getting ready."

"8:00 it is then. I'll see you later, Bonnie."

"See you then, Mason." Bonnie said smiling. She giggled as she hung up the phone. She looked up to see Stefan and Ric staring at her.

"What?" she asked.

"What are you doing?" Ric asked in an accusatory tone. "This is a set up to get information out of Mason – not a real date."

"I know that!" Bonnie said defensively.

"It was hard to tell with all of the giggling and smiling you were doing."

"Ric, I am certain Bonnie hasn't loss sight of the plan." Stefan said calmingly. He turned to look directly at Bonnie. "She knows what's at stake here."

"Yeah, but I wonder if Jeremy does." Ric quipped.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bonnie yelled.

"I'm just reminding you that you of that guy you left back in Mystic Falls." Ric said. "You remember him right? Good hair, nice smile and would walk on water for you. I think his name is Jeremy and you call him your boyfriend."

"Screw you!" Bonnie yelled. "I don't need to be reminded that I have a boyfriend."

"We're loosing sight of the target." Stefan said before Ric could respond. "Ric, why don't we go shower and change to get ready for dinner tonight? Bonnie, we'll plan on being at the restaurant at 7:30. See you there." Stefan said as he ushered Ric out the door.

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie stepped out of the cab in front of Nino's Ristorante Italiano. She really didn't need to take a taxi. It turned out the place was only about 5 minutes from her motel. Not that she would have walked in the heels she was wearing. Originally, she planned to wear a blue dress she purchased on this date, but after her spat with Ric, she felt pants were more appropriate. She was dressed in dark blue skinny jeans that hugged every curve of her legs. She wore a off the shoulder purple shirt that sparkled in the light. She completed the out fit with 4 in peep toe platform stiletto also in purple.

She walked in toward the door. There was out door seating in front. She wove her way through the tables and made it inside. An older woman serving at the hostess greeted her.

"Hello and welcome to Nino's. Table for one?"

Bonnie smiled at her. "No, I am meeting someone here. I am not sure if he is here yet." Just as she finished her statement her phone dinged. She had a text from Mason. He was running late. Bonnie looked back at the hostess. "It looks like my date is running late."

"If you like you can wait at the bar." the nice woman suggested. Bonnie nodded and headed towards the bar. She spotted Stefan and Ric but didn't signal them. She sat door on a stool and shot Stefan a text updating him about the delay. She ordered a sprite when a red head from the near by booth got up and sat next to her. Bonnie ignored him and sipped her Sprite. She then felt his hand softly rubbing her back and she jerked away. She turned and gave him an incredulous look. He heard laughter coming from the group he left back at the booth.

"What the hell are you doing?" Bonnie demanded.

"I didn't mean to freak you. I just thought that all angels had wings." The red head said.

Bonnie rolled her eyes at the cheesy pick up line. Bonnie held out her fingers as she talked. "One: Don't touch me, and two: Really? Did you think that cheesy line would work?"

"I thought it would be enough to get you talking to me and you are. My name is Russ."

"I don't care." Bonnie replied. "And I am waiting for someone so why don't you go join your little friends over there."

"Russ! You leave the paying customers alone!" A female voice whipped cracked in their area. Bonnie looked up to see a pretty young African American girl coming over by them. She was dressed in black pants and a white shirt. She clearly worked at Nino's as a waitress.

"Come on, Tasha. I wasn't bothering her." Russ whined as Tasha got closer to them.

"Mmm-huh." Tasha said. "This girl looks pissed off and disgusted all at the same time. That is a classic sign that you are bothering her. "Gone back over there with everybody else." Tasha ordered. Russ began to walk away from the group. She turned to Bonnie. "I am sorry if he was messing with you. He can't help himself. Every time he sees a pretty face he has to hit on her. He's harmless really."

"Thanks." Bonnie said to Tasha.

"You must be new around here." Tasha said.

"Why do you say that?" Bonnie wondered.

"Well, because you look about my age, but I don't know you and I know everyone in this town. Especially the Black folk. It ain't that many of us in Abingdon."

Bonnie chuckled. "I just got to town a few days ago."

"Well welcome. I hope you enjoy your stay here."

"It's a nice town." Bonnie said.

"Live here all your life and you'll think its' boring as hell, just like the rest of us." She gestured towards the people sitting at the booth. "That's why my friends don't have anything better to do than come bug me a work." Tasha said loud enough so the group would hear her."

"You know you love us." a guy called back.

"I love you, Diego. The rest, eh!" Tasha yelled back with a smile. She looked at Bonnie. "Come on. I'll introduce you to everyone one."

"I'm actually waiting for some one." Bonnie hesitated.

"We're going 5 ft away, honey. We'll be able to see whoever comes in." Tasha insisted. They walked over to the big circular booth. "These are my friends." Tasha began. She gestured towards the man sitting on the outside of the both. "This is Diego."

"I'm her boyfriend, actually." Diego said extending his hand. Bonnie shook it. Diego was a handsome Latino man about 19 years old. His jet black hair was buzzed close to his head. He had a friendly smile and warm eyes."

"That's right, Diego is my boo!" Tasha confirmed. "Right next to him is his sister, Carmen." Since she was on the inside of the booth she just waived at Bonnie and Bonnie waived back. Carmen was gorgeous. She had long brown hair with blond highlights. Something about the look she gave Bonnie made her uncomfortable, though. She seemed to be taking in her measure.

"And next to Carmen is Kevin. He's pretty quiet, but a good guy." Tasha said. Kevin was fat with glasses. He had curly hair and a bashful smile. "Hello." He said softly.

"Hi." Bonnie smiled back.

"Next to him is Ryan. Every group has a pretty boy. He's ours." Tasha explained. Ryan was indeed good looking. His hair was perfect styled and his clothes impeccable. He seemed to be the oldest of the group and Bonnie would say he was 21 years old.

"You are rocking them shoes, girl." Ryan said. "You picked them up at Aldo's?"

"Thank you and yes, I did." Bonnie said.

"Good choice." Ryan complimented her.

"If you couldn't tell from that exchange, Ryan is gay." Russ said. He was seated next to Ryan and in the last position in the booth.

"And you're a jackass." Tasha said annoyed. "Unfortunately you already met Russ. Don't just the rest of us by him."

Bonnie laughed. "I won't."

"I just want to point out that I am bi-sexual not gay and that I've still slept with more girls then you, Russ." Ryan said.

The entire gang laughed at the joke, Bonnie too. She turned when she heard her name behind her. It was Mason.

"Mason, hi!" Bonnie said. He approached the table.

"Well hel_lo_!" Carmen said in appreciation of Mason's good looks, putting emphasis on the second syllable of the word.

Mason was striking. He had on a black tee shirt with a blazer over it. He wore jeans and completed the look with black books.

Mason walked up to Bonnie and stood next to her. "Sorry I am late. You look incredible."

Bonnie smiled and blushed, despite herself. "Thank you." Bonnie said. "And don't worry about being late. I met some nice people who kept me company."

"Well, our table is ready." Mason said.

Bonnie turned to the booth. "It was nice meeting all of you. Maybe I'll see you around."

"Wait a minute." Diego said. He peered at Mason. "Do I know you? You seem familiar."

"No, I don't think so." Mason answered.

"Sorry man. There is just something about you." Diego said.

"Come on you two." Tasha said. "I'll show you to your table." She lead Bonnie and Mason out of the bar area.

Diego watched them go and the entire booth was silent.

"What is it, D?" Carmen asked.

"I think he is one of us." Diego answered slowly.

"Really? We knew word would get out that Abingdon had fallen, but I didn't think others would start showing up so soon." Carmen answered.

"I can't be sure, but there was something about him." Diego sated.

"What about the girl?" Ryan asked.

"Looking for a new shopping partner?" Russ jibbed.

"Shut up, Russ!" Carmen snapped and threw her napkin at him.

"I got a different vibe from the girl." Diego answered.

"I picked up something from her too, and I didn't like it." Carmen added.

"Well have to watch her, but Mason is the prize." Diego said.

XOXOXOXOXO

"So you're a history buff and that is why you are here?" Mason asked Bonnie.

They were finishing their meal. The conversation had been pleasant and delightful for the entire evening. Mason was captivating. Bonnie enjoyed hearing about his life as a professional surfer. He'd been to exotic locals all over the world for training and competitions. After talking most of the dinner, Mason realized he didn't know much about Bonnie. He'd just asked her why she in Abingdon and she told it was to study local history.

"That's right. I know it's not as exciting as being a professional surfer, but I like it." Bonnie answered.

"I bet it's really interesting." Mason said. "Impress me with your knowledge. Tell me something cool about Abingdon."

Bonnie set her fork down and smiled. It was time to start digging. "Um, Ok. Did you know the town has a strange connection to wolves?"

Bonnie watched Mason closely to see his reaction. He raised his eyebrows in surprise at her statement, but only said "Wolves? Really?"

"Yep." Bonnie answered. "The city used to actually be called Wolf Hills. In 1760 Daniel Boone came and camped in Abingdon. Along with his friend, Nathaniel Gist, he was on his way through the area on a hunting trip. While they camped here, wolves emerged from a cave before them and attacked their dogs. Boone then gave Abingdon its first name, "Wolf Hills."

Bonnie silently thanked the Abingdon brochure that was in her motel room. That's where she got her information from. She was so bored over the past two days that she read it over and over. She wasn't sure if she got the year right, but everything she said was true.

"That's pretty interesting." Mason said.

"I know." Bonnie agreed. "It's like this town has a strange connection to those animals. Do you live wolves?"

"Do I like them? I don't get the question."

"You know, are they an animal you like? I am partial to tigers myself. They just look so majestic."

"Wolves are cool, I guess. I never really thought about it." Mason answered.

"So we know why I am here, but what brings you to Abingdon? I don't think it can be surfing." Bonnie asked.

"Actually I'm here visiting friends. I know some people that grew up here."

"So how long are you staying?" Bonnie asked.

Mason shrugged. "Until I am ready to go. If you had asked me this yesterday I would have said I'd be leaving in the next day or two. Today everything changed because I found a whole new reason to stay in Abingdon."

"You would really stay just for me?" asked skeptically.

"I'd stay for the possibility of us." Mason answered. Bonnie looked at him skeptically. "What?" Mason asked.

"You always know the right thing to say." Bonnie answered.

"It's easy when you're honest." Mason replied.

"Are you always this open with your feelings?" Bonnie asked.

"Yep. No sense in hiding anything. Keeping secrets does go with my seize the day philosophy."

"I love your carefree spirit." Bonnie said. Tasha came up to the table and inquired about dessert.

"I couldn't eat another bite!" said Bonnie pushing her plate away.

"I think we just need the check." Mason said.

"I thought you might say that." Tasha said as she put the black vinyl packet down with the bill inside. Mason took it and put cash in the envelope and handed it back to Tasha.

"You can keep the change." Mason said.

"Thanks. You two have a good evening." Tasha replied putting the check in her apron.

"So I am not ready for this night to end." Mason announced. "What do you say we go for a walk? It's a really nice night."

"I'd love that." Bonnie said. "Just let me use the rest room really quick. I'll be right back." She got up from the table and scurried towards the bathroom. She passed the table with Stefan and Ric and discreetly motioned for them to follow. They did so and began to speak once they were outside of view of Mason.

"How's it going?" Stefan asked Bonnie.

"Well, he's opened up about some stuff, but I think I can more out of him." Bonnie explained. "He wants to go for a walk. Do you think you can discreetly follow us? I won't go if you can't."

"We should be able to make that happen." Ric said. "No problem."

"OK, good. I'm going to get back to Mason now." Bonnie said.

Ric and Stefan watched as Bonnie walked backed to the table. Mason stood and put his hands arm around her waist and led her out.

"I don't like how chummy he is with Bonnie." Ric mumbled.

"He thinks they are on a date, Ric. How do you expect them to act?" Stefan asked.

"I don't know." Ric shrugged. "Let's pay our bill and get after them." as he walked to the table.

XOXOXOXO

"So, where are you from, Mason?" Bonnie asked as they strolled through a park. It was just a short distance from the restaurant.

"Who me?"

Bonnie chuckled. "You see any other Masons around here?"

Mason craned his head and looked around. "No, I don't see any around."

Bonnie playfully pushed Mason. "You are such a goof."

Mason laughed. "I am from a small town on the other side of the state. You probably never heard of it."

"You never know." Bonnie countered. "I am from a small town on the other side of the state _and_ I am history buff. I may know where it is at or at least heard of it."

"It doesn't matter." Mason answered. "I told you I am more of a right now person."

"And you know I love history. Isn't there a middle ground?" Bonnie answered.

Mason stopped walking. He looked around as if some one were creeping up on them.

"Mason?" Bonnie asked, suddenly alarmed. "Is something wrong?"

"Shhh!" he ordered. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing up. He could feel something in the air and it wasn't a good sensation.

"What is it?" Bonnie whispered stepping closer to him.

"It feels like we are being hunted." Mason replied. "Someone's watching us."

'_Oh no!' _Bonnie thought. '_He must be able to tell Stefan and Ric are near by.'_

"Come on!" Mason cried urgently. He grabbed her by the wrist and began to run. "We gotta get out of here!"

They didn't make it very far before an unknown assailant crashed into them from behind. Both Bonnie and Mason soared through the air to land harshly on the ground. Mason recovered instantaneously. He scrambled to his feet and looked around for his attacker. Seeing none he rushed to Bonnie's side and helped her up.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked, wincing in pain from the blow to her back.

"Vampires!" Mason spat angrily. Just for an instant, his eyes took on a gold, lupine tint.

Bonnie visible blanched. What did he just say? He didn't just know about supernatural beings, he was one!

"Bonnie!" Ric cried in the distance. He and Stefan were running to catch up with them. The never made it before Mason went on the attack. Using his super speed, he rushed Stefan and took him down.

"Vampire!" Mason said as he attempted to choke Stefan. Taken buy surprise, Stefan went down hard.

"Mason!" Bonnie screamed. "Get off of him!" she reached his side and began tugging on his arms. Ric joined her and began to pull on Mason's muscular forearms.

Stefan recovered from the initial shock and began to use his superior strength to fight back. The three of them managed to get Mason off of Stefan.

Mason tumbled back a few feet while Stefan clambered to his feet. Mason began to charge again, but Bonnie stepped in the way.

"Mason, stop it!" she ordered.

Mason grabbed her by the shoulders. "Don't you know what he is?" he demanded.

"Yes!" Bonnie answered. "And I know what you are too!"

"Guys, we don't have time for this." Ric interrupted.

"He's right." Stefan replied. "We tracked at least 7 vampires tracking you since we've entered the park."

"Friends of yours?" Mason bit out.

"Hardly," a male voice replied.

Mason and the others looked around and realized they were surrounded by 7 vampires. Mason, Bonnie, Stefan and Ric formed a circle with their backs to each other facing their assailants.

"We are here to kill him." The male said. He had presence and a commanding voice. Tall, he stood over 6 ft. He was handsome, with soap opera good looks.

"Can we at least know why your here to kill us?" Stefan asked, trying to sound uninterested.

"I don't see what harm it could do." the man answered. "Him we are killing because he is a werewolf." He said pointing at Mason. "And him we are killing just because." He said point at Ric. "But you two," he said in reference to Bonnie and Stefan. "We were sent to kill you two."

"Sent by whom?" Bonnie asked.

"Question and answer time is over." The man said. "You die now!"

All of the vampires save the one that spoke, rushed the group. Simultaneously the quartet responded.

Two rushed Stefan. He clothesline one and dropped the other with a devastating blow to the stomach.

Ric triggered the device in his sleeve and a stake suddenly appeared in his hand. He jabbed it at the vampire. Surprisingly the vampire was able to pivot causing Ric to miss the heart. He was still able to ram the stake into the undead man's chest causing him sever pain. He followed up with swift kick to the knee that double the vamp over and finished him with an elbow to the back of the head.

Mason went the more direct route. He greeted the charging vampire with a power pack punch straight to the face. The crushing blow sent the vampire flying off his feet and landing 6 feet away.

Bonnie took a deep breath and marshaled her powers. She raised her arms with her palms facing out and two of the vampires were flung backwards. Bonnie send them careening into a near by tree. They impacted with teeth rattling force.

In less then 30 seconds the group leveled the 6 vampires that charged them.

"Is that all you got?" Mason taunted the one vampire who hadn't attacked.

"Impressive," was all the man said. What he did next surprised them. He simply reached down and drove his fingers into the solid concrete of the pathway. Showing no effort, he wrenched a chuck of the path up and hurled it at the crew. They all scattered to avoid being hit by the concrete raining from the sky. It smashed into the ground sending debris everywhere and creating a blinding dust cloud.

"Get up, you idiots." The man cajoled his crew. "Kill them now."

Still recovering, the quartet was unable to respond before their enemies were upon them.

Stefan had two vampires on him again. One held his arms while another used his face as punching bag. Mason and another vampire were trading staggering blows. Another vampire had Ric down and was already feeding on him.

"Get off of him!" Bonnie bellowed. She used her gift to give the vampire multiple aneurisms. He fell off of Ric clutching his head in agony. She saw another vampire approaching and included him in her assault. Sweat poured freely from head. She had to concentrate to keep it up. A third vampire was coming at her. She included him in the attack. She never tried with two vampires let alone three, but she had to try! It didn't work at first as he kept coming. Bonnie pushed harder. She poured all that she had into it. The vampire began to stagger and his footing became unsure. Bonnie kept up the pressure. Finally, but steps away from her the vampire fell the ground in agony. But the effort to Bonnie was overwhelming. She didn't know how long she could keep this up.

"You are impressive." The man spoke again as he crept up behind Bonnie. He did a never pinch right where her neck and shoulders met. Bonnie shrieked in agony and dropped to her knees.

"May I, Malachi?" the vampire Bonnie stopped mere steps from her asked. He wanted to be the one to kill her.

"By all means." The lead vampire spoke. He backed away to give his minion room to do whatever dirty deep he had in mind.

The vampire wobbled to his feet. He took the steps closer to Bonnie. She was on the ground shaking from the spasm induced by the nerve pinch. The vampire raised his hand. "I am going to show you your heart before I feast on it!" he announced.

Bonnie looked up in horror even as she tried to marshal her powers against her attacker. She saw a shadow pass over her but wasn't really sure what happened. The vampire standing over her suddenly fell on top of her. Frantically she tried to push his body away and the she notice that he didn't have a head. Blood spurted freely from his neck, covering Bonnie. She screamed in horror. She began to cough as the vampires blood got into her mouth. She stopped screaming and look over to see a giant wolf in their midst. But it wasn't just any wolf. This wolf had all black fur and was the size of a polar bear.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" The lead vampire questioned. He watched as one of his vampires rushed the wolf. With a swing of his gargantuan head, the wolf sent the vampire sailing through the air. The other vampires left their other targets and began to circle the wolf. The beast in the center snapped his jaws viciously at the vampires.

"No, no." The Malachi said simply. He was still giving orders from the background. "Retreat." he commanded. And with that he simply faded away into the darkness.

With a nod to each other the remaining vampires ran away simultaneously, each in different direction using their super speed. The wolf was so confused by their sudden departure he didn't know who to follow.

Bonnie looked around the area. Ric lay on the ground, barely breathing, bleeding profusely from the vampire bite to his neck. Stefan was also unconscious, after the beat down he'd taken from the two vampires. Mason was still standing, but he was winded from his fight. There was a cut above his left eye and he was fairly certain at least one of his ribs was cracked.

The wolf surveyed the scene in front of him. He growled at the as he decided what to do.

"Tyler?" Mason called out to wolf. He approached the wolf with hands raised trying to be as nonthreatening as possible. "Tyler, is that you?"

The wolf growl again and snapped at Mason. He stopped his approach and took a couple of steps back.

"Easy Tyler! It's me – Uncle Mason."

_'Uncle Mason!' _Bonnie thought. _'He's Tyler's uncle!' _That explains the connection and the vision she saw. No wonder he was a looking for Tyler!

The wolf didn't seem to recognize the familial relation. He charged Mason. The human used his supernatural speed and flung himself out of the way of the werewolf. The beast raised his head and sniffed the air. He then howled and spun around and headed back towards the rest of the fallen crew. He sniffed the air again and then headed straight towards Stefan.

"Tyler no!" Bonnie cried out. Instinctively she reached out with her gift. Stefan's body was flung from the ground into a near by tree. It wasn't a gently process. He was draped over a branch at his mid section. His legs and arms dangled in the air.

The werewolf stopped and turned on a dime. He ran to the tree and began jumping, trying to reach Stefan. We ne realized he couldn't, he turned and looked at Bonnie, as if he realized she was the source of his problem. He began to charge her. Bonnie watched in horror. There was nothing she could do. Suddenly she found herself swept up in Mason's strong arms and carried out of the way.

"He doesn't recognize either of us, Bonnie. He's all beast now." Mason surmised.

"We have to stop him!" Bonnie insisted, but Mason held her tight.

"There is nothing we can do!" Mason argued. "He's stronger than both of us.

"Move!" Bonnie yelled as she tried to break free of his grasp. She looked up just in time to see that Wolf Tyler was upon them. He bowled into them slamming Mason into a near by tree. Bonnie was flung in the air and landed on the ground a few feet away.

"Ow!" Bonnie meowed as he hit the ground. She landed hard put her hands out to break her fall. She felt her wrist bend the wrong way. She rolled over onto her back just in time to see Wolf Tyler step over her. Silva dripped down and hit her face. She looked up and the last thing she remembered seeing was Tyler gaping jaws coming towards her face.

END CHAPTER

So there you have it. Chapter 3. I hope it was worth the wait and that you enjoyed the chapter. I PROMISE chapter 4 will be up much faster.

All of that stuff I said about Abingdon is totally truth and totally a coincidence! I went to the city website and was amazed at the stuff about how it used to be called Wolf Hills. I knew NONE of that when I chose that city for my story. What luck!

I am pretty visual person and it I usually have an actor in mind for characters I create. I will list below which actors I have in mind for any characters of significance for any of you who want to get a visual reference for the characters I created. All should be available via the Internet Movie Database or a Google image serch.

NEXT UP: All hell breaks lose. Something will get the entire gang to Abingdon and it won't be pretty.

Michelle: Regina King  
Tasha: Erica Hubbard  
Diego: Jay Hernandez  
Carmen: Christina Milian  
Russ: Jonah Hill  
Ryan: Nick Zano  
Kevin: Kinsey McLean  
Malachi: Greg Vaughn


	4. Chapter 4

Ok – so after a RIDICULOUSLY long delay, I am finally updating this story! SORRY for such the long intermission. I have no real excuse. I had the outline, but I just couldn't find the time to put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard as it were. To make up for it, this chapter is by far the LONGEST chapter I have ever written. I reworked my outline and combined two chapters in one. I was just what I needed to reignite my fire. Well, that and last week's episode of Vampire Diaries, "Ghost World". What the hell happened to my Bremey! If I can't get a happy ending on the show, I guess I'll have to write my own.

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS REVIEWED THIS STORY! You guy and gals are awesome!

So here is chapter 4! I hope you enjoy it! As always, please read and review!

Chapter 4

"How did you let this happen!" Elena angrily demanded as she grabbed Bonnie by the shoulders. She shook her slightly as she spoke.

"I am so sorry!" Bonnie sobbed as she fell back on the bed in her shoddy motel room.

"You're sorry!" Elena exploded. She threw her hands up in the air. "Bonnie, I don't know how much more I can take."

"It wasn't supposed to be like this." Bonnie blubbered. "Nobody was supposed to die!"

"Yet here we are." Damon said acidly from the darkened corner of the room where he sat. He stood and walked towards Bonnie. "I told you this wasn't a game. This is reality. People are dying. Your friends are dying and it's your fault." Damn declared.

"Don't you think I know that!" Bonnie screamed before she degenerated into incoherent sobs.

Damon's harden heart soften. He was angry, but he didn't mean to belittle her. He sat down on the bed. "Bonnie," he began reaching out to her. She recoiled from his touch. He sighed. "Bonnie, stop crying. It isn't going to solve anything."

"She knows that, Damon!" Elena snapped. "She's not crying because she thinks it will make things better. She's crying because we were awful to her." Elena sat on the bed next to Bonnie. "Are you Ok?"

"I'm fine." Bonnie said sitting up and pulling herself together. "But please Elena, don't apologize. You were right. I messed up. Big time."

"Why don't you tell us what happened?" Tim suggested. He'd been sitting in a chair in a corner of the room, quietly trying to digest everything that happened. He scooted closer to Bonnie, Elena and Damon on the bed. "It's been such a whirlwind since we arrived that we haven't hand a chance to get the details yet."

"Yeah, the last time I talked to Stefan he told me you were going on a date with Mason and that he and Ric were tagging along." Elena prompted her.

"That's right." Bonnie said drawing her knees to her chest as she spoke. "I met Mason in an antique store. We touched and I got a vision of him and the Lockwoods. So I knew there was a connection, but I didn't know what it was. Because of that, I agreed to go on a date with him when he asked me out. We had to figure out what was going on."

"So you flirting with me isn't the only thing that has the boy wonder upset." Damon smirked in reference to Jeremy.

"Damon." Elena admonished.

"Please go on." Tim stated.

"Well, I went on the date with Mason, and I had Ric and Stefan sitting a nearby table as back up." Bonnie continued. "Everything was going fine. I found out a little more about him at dinner, but nothing about his connection to Tyler. Then we decided to go for a walk after dinner. I let Stefan and Ric know and then we left. We were walking through the park when it happened." Bonnie said trailing off. She struggled to maintain her composure as the memories flooded her mind.

"What happened?" Tim prompted.

Bonnie's head slowly rose as she held his gaze. "Everything started to go wrong." She sounded so detached, so void of emotions, like she shut herself off to survive. Her head dropped again before she spoke. "We were attacked by vampires. I think there were 7 of them. Ric and Stefan were there with Mason and me by this time.

Despite being out numbered, we actually held our own. We were even winning the fight at one point. Between Stefan and Mason's enhanced strength, Ric's vampire hunting skill and gadgets and my powers, we were pretty bad assed."

"Wait – Mason's got super strength in human form?" Damon interrupted.

"Yes." Bonnie nodded her head. "He's a formidable fighter."

"The Lockwood's are just a pack of animals." Damon muttered.

"I wonder what they would say about the Salvatores if they knew what you and Stefan really are." Elena stated pointedly at Damon. He waived his hand to dismiss her. She turned back to Bonnie. "So you guys won the fight with the vampires?"

Bonnie shook her head again. "No. We were doing fine until the lead vampire joined in. He was so strong. We didn't stand a chance against him. Stefan and Ric both went down. Mason and I tried to fight back, but the vampires were so well coordinated. This wasn't their first time fighting together." Bonnie said as she had the realization. "I remember being knocked down on the ground and this vampire was going to kill me." A tear rolled down Bonnie's face and Elena hugged her closer. "Then next thing I know the vampire is beheaded. I didn't see it happen, but the body fell on top of me and the blood… There was so much blood. It got all over me. I remember coughing up blood that wasn't my own."

"Oh Bonnie!' Elena said.

"I gotta keep going." Bonnie said in the same detached voice. "It was Werewolf Tyler that decapitated the vampire. He came out of nowhere and took the head clean off. The other vamps tried to fight him, but he stood his ground. Then the lead vampire, Malachi I think, told them to leave and in unison they all disappeared."

"What happened next?" Damon asked.

"Tyler, he tried to attack your brother. I used my powers to move Stefan to safety. Then Tyler came after Mason and me. Mason tried to reach the human Tyler, but it was no good. He couldn't comprehend us. Mason got knocked out and it was just me." Bonnie said as the tears flowed more freely from her face. If she could feel them she didn't acknowledge them. Elena wiped them away.

"Tell us, Bonnie." Tim said. "We need to know what happened."

Bonnie nodded. "He knocked me down. I remember looking up and seeing his gaping mouth, drooling, ready to crush my skull…."

-START FLASHBACK-

Bonnie screamed in horror as Wolf Tyler leered over her. Instinctively, she lashed out with her powers. However instead of a telekinetic push, she created a bright flash of light that felt like it emanated from her very soul.

Wolf Tyler yelped in pain and leapt away. Bonnie quickly scrambled to her feet as the wolf recovered. The beast eyed her up and growled. He circled her warily. Bonnie mirrored his moves, walking in a circle as well, never letting Tyler get behind her.

_'What__the__hell__am__I__going__to__do?_' Bonnie thought as desperation began to sink in. Then, as she walked in the circle, she saw it. Salvation. A vile of holy water lay on the ground next to Ric. It must have fallen out of his pocket during his struggle with the vampire.

_'This__is__going__to__be__tricky_.' Bonnie thought. She had to get the vial while simultaneously keeping wolf Tyler at bay. _'Nobody__said__this__life__was__easy_.' Bonnie reflected with grim determination. She steeled herself before acting. Then at once she used her powers to push Tyler away and bring the vile to her.

The beast howled in surprised. Then he fought back against Bonnie and broke free of her hold. He began to charge at the frightened witch.

Bonnie looked on in horror. She'd had the vile and she struggled to get it open. She didn't think she would do it in time. Wolf Tyler was getting closer and closer and picking up speed as he ran. Suddenly the black plunger popped out of the cylinder container and the liquid was free. Instantaneously she used it to light the ground around her on fire. The blazed formed a circle around the witch. Bonnie willed the fire to grow until it formed a wall around her.

She could see through the flames that the beast was startled. Bonnie pushed one of her hands out and the flame leapt toward Wolf Tyler. He yelped and jumped backwards. He snapped viciously in the air where the flame had been. Bonnie lifted her other hand and more fire sprang toward the wolf. She kept hurling fire steams at the beast. Wolf Tyler kept backing up and trying to bite the flames.

Finally, she nailed him right in the face with a ball of fire. The beast wailed in a mixture of pain and surprise. Bonnie's heart broke. She really didn't want to hurt Tyler, but she didn't see any other choice. With a singed snout, the beast howled and retreated using its super speed.

Bonnie kept her fire wall burning for five more minutes, just in case Wolf Tyler returned. Then slowly, she dropped the wall. She let it die down, leaving just a small section no bigger than a quarter burning.

She fell to the ground exhausted. Using her powers so much had left her very weakened. Still, she managed the strength to drag herself to her feet to check on her friends.

Warily, she made it to Ric's side. She checked for a pulse. Thankfully, it was there and beating strongly. She ripped a strip of fabric off her new shirt and wrapped it around the wounds on Ric's neck.

"He Ok?" Mason asked behind her. He was limping his way towards her, obviously wounded from the blow Wolf Tyler dealt him.

"He's weak, but I think he'll be OK." Bonnie replied as she turned to face him. "What about you?"

"I got advanced healing. I'll be fine." Mason stated.

"Good. Can you check on Stefan?" Bonnie asked.

"The vampire you flung up into a tree?" Mason asked incredulously. "Get real!"

"He could be seriously hurt!" Bonnie objected.

"I hope he is!" Mason retorted. "He's a vampire. It's the least he deserves."

"Mason!" Bonnie pleaded.

"No way!" The werewolf stood his ground.

"I don't need his help anyway." Stefan yelled from the tree. He had woken up from the beating he'd taken from two vampires. With a spectacular display of power, he leapt down from the tree in one incredible bound.

"How's Ric?" Stefan asked as he made his way towards them.

"He has a pulse, but he's lost a lot of blood." Bonnie explained.

"Maybe I should…"Stefan trailed off. Bonnie knew what he meant. Maybe he should give Ric some of his blood. Its supernatural properties would heal Ric much faster than anything else.

"Go ahead." Bonnie agreed stepping back from Ric. Stefan raised his wrist to his mouth and pierced it to get the blood flowing.

"What are you doing?" Mason asked alarmed. He stepped in front of Stefan.

"He's helping and don't you interfere!" Bonnie yelled rising. She pushed Mason out of the way.

"What's wrong with you?" Mason demanded. "He's going to turn that guy into a vampire.

"No, he's not." Bonnie replied shaking her head. "He's healing him."

"But if he dies with vampire blood in his system-" Mason began.

"Then we'll have to make sure he doesn't die!" Bonnie interrupted.

"To that end, we should get out of here." Stefan said standing. He'd already given Ric his blood. "I don't want to run into those vampires again."

"Or Tyler." Bonnie said with got her a surprised look from Stefan. "I have a lot to catch you guys up on."

"What about him?" Stefan said in reference to Mason. He'd hoisted Ric onto his shoulders.

"You're coming with us, Mason." Bonnie said. "I have a lot of questions and you are the only one who can answer them."

"And if I refuse?" Mason asked defiantly.

Bonnie stared at him considering what to say. "It would be very," she paused before continuing. She wanted to make sure she chose just the right word. "It would be very unhealthy for you to refuse me anything right now."

Mason looked at Bonnie and saw a hardness that he hadn't noticed before. He did not want to test this woman.

"Fine. I'll go with you." Mason conceded.

"I thought you'd see it my way." Bonnie smirked.

XOXOXOXOXO

"I thought we agreed to meet at 9:30 PM tonight." Damon said as Michelle approached him. He sat on the same park bench where he originally met the witch.

Michelle looked at her watch. It was just after 10:00 PM. "So I am a few minutes late. Sue me." Michelle shrugged. She stood before Damon who didn't rise to greet her.

Damon's eyes narrowed in anger. He didn't like being kept waiting. "Are you ready to move forward with our deal?"

"I told you love spells are the most complicated spells out there. They take time and effort."

"You've had over a week." Damon complained.

"And I'll need at least another week to get ready for a spell of this magnitude." Michelle stated. She could see Damon's impatience rising. "You'll have to trust me just like I am trusting you'll help me get some items from Shelia Bennett's house once I complete the spell."

"You know, that's something I don't understand." Damon stated. "Are you telling me you got nothing up your witch's sleeve that will allow you to break into the house yourself?"

"No, I don't." Michelle stated plainly. "Shelia Bennett cast a spell over that house that prevents unwelcome witches from entering. Unlike the whole vampire curse that prevents you from entering a home uninvited, the witches curse carries on after death."

"So in the meantime we just wait?" Damon asked.

"No, I can start laying down some of the ground work now." Michelle stated. She sat down next to Damon. "Did you bring the picture of your lady love like I asked?"

"Yeah, got it right here." Damon said reaching into the back pocket of his jeans. He pulled out a candid photo of Bonnie taken during the prom pre-party at the Lockwood estate. Bonnie dazzled in the shimmering gold gown and her hair pulled up in a sophisticated twist. He hand the picture to Michelle.

She took it and surprise played across her face. She inhaled deeply and then looked up at Damon. "This is your girl?"

"Yeah." Damon answered suspiciously. "Why do you seem so surprised?"

"Well, it's common knowledge in supernatural circles in this town that you had it bad for Katherine Pierce first and then her doppelganger, Elena Gilbert. That's who I expected you to hand me a picture of. Not this girl here. She's beautiful. Who is she?"

"Her name is Bonnie Bennett."

"Bennett? She's not related to Shelia, is she?"

"Yeah, it's her granddaughter."

"You can't be serious!" Michelle yelled standing.

"What does that matter?" Damon asked confused.

"She's a witch Damon! She may know how to actively stop the spell! The plan is off! I will have to find another way to get what I want from that house!" She tossed Bonnie picture at him and began to walk away when Damon was suddenly in her face gripping her tightly by the arms.

"Oh no you don't." he growled. "We had a plan. You cast this spell and I get you what you want from that stupid house. You cross me and I'll kill you."

"But Damon, she could resist!" Michelle pleaded.

"Then compensate. You just get it done!" Damon ordered.

"This is a doomed plan, Damon." Michelle stated with resignation in her voice. "But hey, it's your loss because if this doesn't work I still want the stuff out of Shelia's house. Hand me the picture." Michelle held out her hand and Damon gave it to her. "Now place a drop of your blood on it." Michelle ordered. Damon bared his fangs and pricked his index finger. He squeezed blood onto the photograph.

Michelle took it and concentrated. She whispered a spell in Latin. Soon the blood covered the entire picture and it disappeared from her hand.

"What did you just do?" Damon asked.

"A spell that should lay the ground work and soften Bonnie's heart towards you." Michelle said. She was winded and sat down on the bench. "I hope you know what you are doing. Love spells are nothing to toy around with. If Bonnie finds out this could all backfire and she'll end up hating you."

"Let me worry about Bonnie, OK?" Damon said snidely. "You just make sure your love spell works."

xoxoxoxoxo

"You can have a seat." Bonnie said to Mason as they entered into her motel room.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Stefan asked. He stood outside of her door with Ric propped up against him.

"I'll be fine." Bonnie assured him as she leaned against the door. "You take Ric next door and get cleaned up. I'll do the same and then we can meet with our friend in there." Bonnie instructed Stefan. The friend she was referring to was Mason. He sat defiantly on the desk, waiting for them to make their next move.

"But if he tries anything-" Stefan objected.

"If he should be foolish enough to try anything I'll be gentle." Bonnie promised.

"Fine." Stefan agreed. "Mason," he called out to the werewolf. "Just know that I am right next door with my super hearing listening to everything you say and do. If Bonnie doesn't finish you off, I will."

"I'm shaking, vampire." Mason taunted him.

Bonnie shut the door and turned to face her guest. He smiled. "This has been some first date." Mason said flopping down the unoccupied bed.

"There won't be a second." Bonnie said dryly. "You have a lot of explaining to do."

"So do you." Mason quipped. "Somehow I don't think either of us are surprised that the other wasn't completely honest."

"I am going to go clean up before we get too deep into this." Bonnie said. She began riffling through her clothes to get something to wear after getting out of the shower. She settled on her pajamas which were simply a pair of boy shorts and a T-Shirt. She looked at Mason. "Will you stay here until we've had a chance to talk?"

He considered her words. "Yeah, I guess." Mason answered.

"Good." Bonnie said as she began to walk to the bathroom when there was a knock at the door. She sighed and went to answer it. It was Mr. Johnson, the motel manager.

"Good evening. Everything alright in here?" Mr. Johnson asked peering past Bonnie into her room.

"Everything is fine. Why do you ask?" Bonnie informed him while moving to block his view into her room.

"Is that blood all over your shirt?" he asked surprised. "And didn't I see you and that one guy carrying that other fella back to his room? He didn't look so good." He was referring to Stefan helping Ric back to their room.

"He just had too much to drink, tripped and fell. He hit his head, this is his blood." Bonnie lied. Good thing she thought quickly on her feet! "But don't worry about him. He'll be fine in the morning."

"Is that so?" the manager said, clearly not believing her 100%. "What about this fella in here with you?"

"What about him?" Bonnie said allowing some of her anger from the evening creep into her tone.

"You didn't pay for double occupancy of this room. You'll need to pay extra if he's staying the night."

"Don't worry; he's not staying the night!" Bonnie spoke before she thought.

"Look lady, I don't want any trouble. This ain't that kind of motel."

Bonnie wasn't sure what he meant at first and then it hit her – he thought she was a prostitute!

"I'm not that kind of girl!" Bonnie objected vehemently. "Look, everything is fine. I promise you there won't be any trouble. Now if you'll excuse me. " Bonnie said right before she shut the door in his face. She turned to see Mason trying to contain his laughter.

"It's not funny!" She stated angrily.

"It kind of is." Mason chuckled.

"He thought I was a hooker!"

"That'd make me your John. How do you think I feel?"

"Amused." Bonnie said. She grabbed her clothes off of the bed again. "I'm going to take a shower."

"You're not worried I am going to bolt?" Mason asked surprised.

"No." Bonnie said. No need to tell she cast a spell that put a barrier on her room. He may have entered, but he wasn't leaving without her say so. She reached the doorway to the bathroom when she heard him call out her name. She turned to face him.

"I just wanted to tell you that not everything I told you was a lie." Mason stated. Bonnie didn't respond and he kept talking. "For instance, when I told you were the most beautiful woman I had ever seen and I just had to know you – that was the truth."

Bonnie frowned, which wasn't the reaction Mason was hoping for. She shut the door behind her and started the shower.

It wasn't supposed to be the way, she thought. Mason wasn't supposed to be the hot, mysterious, surfer god who found her beautiful. She was supposed to come to Abingdon, find Tyler and bring him back to Mystic Falls. Nobody said anything about finding his sexy uncle too.

She happily began to peel the blood soaked clothes off of her aching body. She stepped in the shower with the water as hot as possible. She let it pour over her entire body. As the dirt and blood began to wash away she imagined she could see the stress of the day flowing off of her as well.

She could use a neck rub right now. Jeremy gave the best neck rubs, especially when they were in the shower together. Bonnie could almost feel his strong hands now, running up from the small of her back to her shoulders. She smiled as she imagined the heat of his body against hers. He would always whisper sensual things in her ear. She leaned back and opened her eyes, expecting to see his face, except it wasn't Jeremy's face she saw.

She screamed.

Instantly Mason was banging on the door.

"Bonnie!" he yelled.

"No! Don't come in here!" Bonnie called out, pulling herself together.

"What's going on?" Mason asked.

"Nothing. I'm fine." Bonnie said, though her voice betrayed her.

"I don't believe you. I'm coming in!" Mason announced as he began to push on the door with his shoulder, prepared to take it off of its hinges.

"No don't!" Bonnie said urgently. "I'm fine. Just let me finish my shower and I'll be right out."

"You got five minutes. Then I am coming in to see that you are fine with my own two eyes." Mason declared.

Bonnie sighed and quickly washed up. She believed Mason when he said he would barge in on her and she wanted to avoid that embarrassing encounter if at all possible. Especially after the vision she just had. She finished showering in record time and quickly dried off. She towel dried her hair and put it into a pony tail high on her head.

She exited the bathroom to find Mason as well as Stefan and Ric waiting for her.

"I heard you scream." Stefan explained when Bonnie looked at him expectantly. "Is everything alright?"

"I thought I saw someone in the shower with me." Bonnie said. "It's nothing." Bonnie said waiving her hand to dispel the concern that played across Stefan's face.

"Are you OK?" Ric asked.

"I'm just tried and my mind is playing tricks on me." Bonnie replied. "Besides I should be asking you that question."

"Nothing like having half the blood in your body sucked out of you to make grateful to be alive." Ric quipped.

"That's what hanging around vampires will do to you." Mason stated from his position on the desk. Everyone turned to look at him. "Was it something I said?" Mason asked sarcastically.

"Alright. I think our guest is getting impatient with us." Bonnie said. She took a seat on the bed and Stefan and Ric flanked her on either side. "So let's get to it."

"What's your connection to the Lockwood family?" Stefan asked.

"Go to hell vampire." Mason replied.

"He's Tyler's uncle." Bonnie supplied. Mason gave her a dirty look and she just stared at him.

"What?" Ric said.

"How do you know that?" Stefan asked.

Bonnie waited for Mason to answer. When he didn't Bonnie spoke.

"After you guys were knocked out by the lead vampire, Tyler appeared. Well, werewolf Tyler actually. He was huge. And dangerous. He uh," Bonnie looked down. "He saved my life." She looked up again. "He came out of nowhere and decapitated a vampire that was about to kill me. The other vampires were going to attack him but the lead vampire; I think he said his name was Malachi, ordered them to retreat. Tyler then turned on us. He went after you first Stefan. Instinctively he must have known you were a vampire. I used my powers and lifted you into a tree."

"I was curious about how I got up there." Stefan chimed in.

"Well once he couldn't get to you he turned on us. Mason tried to reach the human side of him by referring to himself as Uncle Mason."

"So your Tyler's uncle." Stefan said.

"Maybe, maybe not." Mason replied.

"Maybe not?" Ric asked confused. "Do you always refer to yourself as Uncle Mason to teenage boys who have been turned into werewolves? Cause if you do, that's kind of creepy."

"Maybe I am an old friend of the Lockwood family." Mason supplied.

"Maybe on a half-moon you turn into a giant ass." Ric snapped.

"We don't have time for this." Stefan said. "I'll just compel him." Stefan said as he stood.

Mason stood as well. "Try it." he threatened.

Bonnie grabbed Stefan by the arm. "We can't afford a fight in here. The manager is already suspicious. He saw us carrying Ric back earlier."

"It wouldn't be worth it anyway. Vampire compulsions don't work on werewolves." Mason said.

"From everything I researched he's right." Ric offered.

"So what are going to do now?" Mason asked. "Try to beat the information out of me?"

"Sounds like a plan to me." Stefan replied.

"No, there is a better way." Bonnie said. She turned to Mason. "I think I can cast a truth spell on you."

"You think?" Mason asked dubiously.

"The thing is, I've never done one. You see, for all my power I'm still pretty new to this whole being a witch thing." Bonnie stood and walked towards Mason. "I feel like I should warn you that all of my spells don't exactly turn out the way I want them to."

"I seem to recall a time when you tried to help Elena with her mid-terms by casting a spell to help her remember. You erased her short term memory for 3 weeks." Stefan lied.

"He's kidding, right?" Mason asked. Bonnie just shrugged and smiled sheepishly at him.

"So the way I see it, Mason, you have two options: A – tell us the truth about everything, or B – Bonnie casts her spell and hopes she doesn't turn your mind to mush." Ric summarized.

Mason just stared at the trio, trying to decide what to do. After a few moments, the decision was taking away from him.

"Option B it is." Bonnie said as she used her powers to hurl Mason across the room and pin him to the wall.

"What the hell are you doing!" Mason demanded as she struggled against Bonnie's control. It was useless. It felt like a vice held him up.

"What I have to do." Bonnie answered his question. It took tremendous strength for her not to show how much effort holding him took.

"You would seriously experiment on me, Bonnie?" Mason asked. Bonnie was surprised to hear the hurt in his voice. She was even more shocked to realize that it was tugging on a piece of her heart.

"I don't want to hurt you, Mason." Bonnie admitted. Her voice cracked as she spoke. "But I have to help Tyler. He is like he is because of me. I have to do everything I can to save him."

"But do the ends really justify the means. You don't seem like that kind of person to me." Mason stated. He knew he didn't know Bonnie very well, but he was certain she wasn't evil and he could see she took no joy out of what she was planning to do to him.

Bonnie stared at Mason and found herself going back to a conversation she'd had with Damon before. He told her they were more alike than she cared to admit, that there was darkness to her soul. She shuddered at the thought that he may be right.

With a wave of her hand she let Mason down off of the wall. She felt relieved instantly that she no longer had to maintain the effort of holding him up.

"Alright Mason. We are going to do this the right way." Bonnie said. "I believe we both want to help Tyler. It would be a better use of our time to work together instead of against each other. Do you agree?"

Mason considered her words and then answered. "I do. Despite the fact you're in cahoots with a vampire, I'll tell you what you want to know."

"Thank you." Bonnie said pleased. "Now, how do you know Tyler?"

"I am his uncle. His father, Richard, was my big brother."

"What are you doing in Abingdon?" Stefan asked.

"Same as you: searching for Tyler." Mason answered.

"How did you know he'd be here?" Ric asked.

"I didn't." Mason replied.

"Then why are you here?" Bonnie asked. "What in your search lead you to this town?"

"At Richard's funeral Carol told me Tyler had run away. She asked me to search for him and I agreed. While I've been looking she's been feeding me tips. She told me to come to this city."

"How did she know?" Stefan asked.

"I don't know. She didn't say." Mason said. "My turn to ask questions now. Who were those vampires that attacked us?"

They all looked at each other before Bonnie spoke. "We don't know."

"They said they were sent to kill you two." Mason pressed. "Do you know who might have sent them?"

"The only enemy Bonnie and I have in common is witch named Oliver." Stefan answered. "He is the person responsible for Tyler's condition."

"One more question for you, Bonnie. If you can't even do a truth spell, how are you going to fix my nephew?"

"Honestly, I don't know." Bonnie admitted. "I've been doing some research and the only for sure way to fix him is with the Moonstone."

"Which we aren't even sure exisit." Ric added.

"If you could get your hands on this stone, you could reverse the curse?" Mason inquired.

"Yeah. Without it I am going to have to try to improvise something." Bonnie said. A yawn escaped her mouth.

"You're exhausted." Mason stated. "Why don't we pick this up tomorrow?"

"You're calling the shots now?" Ric asked Mason.

"No, but I have compassion." Mason challenged. "Maybe you didn't hear what she said earlier, but she's so tired she is hallucinating. Nothing I am going to tell you tonight is so critical that it can't wait until the morning."

"Guys, I _am_ sleepy." Bonnie interjected forestalling another argument. "Why don't we call it a night and start fresh in the morning?"

"That sounds fine to me." Mason agreed. "How about I meet you for breakfast?"

"How about you meet **us** for breakfast." Stefan corrected him. "There's a George Webb's a few blocks from here. Let' meet there at 8:30."

"Fine." Mason agreed. He began to make his way to the door followed by Stefan and Ric.

Bonnie closed her eyes and concentrated. She willed the barrier down before anyone ran into it. She opened her eyes and called up the men. "Uh guys," she said. Mason had just opened the door. He turned to look at her as did Ric and Stefan. "Let's make it 9." Bonnie said with a sheepish smile.

They all murmured their agreement and left her room. Bonnie grabbed her cell phone from the night stand. It was after 1:00 in the morning. She wanted to call Jeremy but she knew he had to work in the morning. She didn't want to wake him, but she needed to talk.

'Screw it,' she thought to herself and dialed his number. It rang several times before going to voicemail. She left a message.

"Hey Jeremy, it's me. I know it's late and I didn't really expect you to pick up. We just had an eventful night and I wanted to hear your voice before I went to bed. I will talk to you tomorrow. Love you."

Bonnie sat the phone on the night stand and flopped on her back on the bed. Her mind wondered back to the events in the shower. She was daydreaming about Jeremy, but it wasn't his face she saw.

But the face that she saw… Why oh why was HE in her dreams?

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Come on guys." Mason said as dropped his fork to his plate. It made an annoying clatter and seemed to echo Mason's mood. "You've been drilling me for the past hour and half. There is nothing left to tell you." He sat at a table in the George's Webb's with Stefan on his left and Ric on his right. Bonnie said directly across from him.

"So what do we do now?" Ric asked.

"I say we stick with the original plan," said Bonnie. "Find Tyler, use the mystic chain to bind him and then I break the spell."

"But you aren't even sure you can break the spell." Mason objected.

"But I have to try." Bonnie argued. "You saw him, Mason. He's a wild animal and he isn't being discreet. We have to reverse this before the general population finds out about him and we have mass hysteria on our hands."

"I agree with Bonnie." Stefan added. Before anyone could say more two loud teenagers entered the restaurant. Well, the girl was loud. The boy just seemed to be listening. Bonnie recognized them from the restaurant last night. It was the waitress Tasha and her boyfriend Diego.

"Nuh-uh, Diego. You are not backing out on me." Tasha said as they entered George Webb's. This is the only day off I have while the fair is in town. We are having breakfast then you are taking me!"

"Fine, we'll go." Diego conceded. "But it is so hot out there. Don't be surprised if we melt."

Tasha rolled her eyes. "You do not have to worry about melting. You are not that cool!" Tasha joked.

"Why can't we go this evening, when the sun goes down?" Diego pleaded.

"Because it's supposed to rain tonight."

The door opened again and Carmen, Diego's younger sister entered the restaurant.

"'Bout time you got here, girl." Tasha stated. "We were getting ready to eat without you."

Carmen rolled her eyes. "Sorry Tasha. We can't all be like you, on time for everything. Besides, it's not like George Webb's stops serving breakfast."

"Whatever." Tasha said waiving her hand at Carmen. "Like I was just telling your brother this is my only day off and I want to enjoy it." Tasha stopped talking when she noticed Bonnie. She walked over to their table with Diego and Carmen in tow. "Hey girl!" she exclaimed. "It's Bonnie, right?"

"Yeah, it is." Bonnie confirmed. "How are you doing, Tasha?"

"We are doing fine, just arguing about the fair. Are you going?" Tasha asked.

"I didn't know anything about the fair." Bonnie replied.

"It's really fun." Tasha answered. "They come once a year and they have the usual – you know rides, games, clowns and roller coasters. I like it cause it gives us something different to do. You should go if you have time."

"Maybe we will." Bonnie replied, though the men at the table gave her dubious looks.

"Good. All of our friends you met yesterday will be there - Kevin, Ryan and Russ. It's going to be a good time. You can bring your friends." Tasha said gesturing around the table.

"I'm sorry, let me introduce my friends." Bonnie apologized. "You know Mason."

"He's your boyfriend, right?" Tasha asked.

Bonnie smiled awkwardly and kept on speaking. "This is Stefan and Ric. Guys, this is Tasha, her boyfriend Diego and his sister Carmen."

"Hey man, do you I know you?" Diego asked Mason. He'd been staring intently at Mason since he approached the table.

'No man, I don't think so." Mason answered. "You asked me that yesterday too."

"There is just something that is really familiar about you to me." Diego stated.

"I must have one of those faces." Mason replied.

"He would remember meeting you. Your face is unforgettable." Carmen said giving Mason a seductive glance. She'd just applied lip gloss and her lips were shinny. Bonnie arched her eyebrow at that statement.

"Back off Carmen!" Tasha ordered. "You know that is Bonnie's boyfriend. Ugh! You act like you ain't got no home training!"

"It's too early Tasha, don't start with me." Carmen snarked.

"Girls, if you are going to argue at lease do it at your own table." Diego said. "We'll see you guys around." Diego led the girls away to their own table. As they turned to leave Bonnie noticed the top to Carmen's lip gloss had fallen.

"Carmen!" Bonnie called out as she got up and retrieved the cap. Carmen turned to see what Bonnie wanted. Before Bonnie could speak, Carmen launched into a defensive speech.

"Look, I didn't mean anything with the comment to Mason." Carmen said. "He's hot and sometimes I speak before I think."

"It's alright." Bonnie said genuinely.

"It was just harmless flirting." Carmen explained.

"I know. Besides, I bet you have a guy in your life, right?" Bonnie said.

"How did you know?" Carmen asked amazed.

"You're a pretty girl. It wasn't hard to guess." Bonnie smiled. "I just wanted to tell you that you dropped this." Bonnie said handing the top to her.

"Thanks." Carmen said taking the cap.

Their hands met as Bonnie handed the cap to her. Suddenly, Bonnie became light headed and dizzy. She stumbled backwards and Carmen had to reach out and physically grab her.

Sights, sounds and feelings flooded through Bonnie. The increased physical contact with Carmen only made things worse.

"We're free from being hunted!" Bonnie cried out. "It's our time to own the night!"

"What are you talking about?" Carmen asked bewildered. She released Bonnie and let her stumble backwards. Stefan and Ric stood to go to Bonnie's aid, but Mason beat them to it. Instantly it seemed that he was at her side. Mason took Bonnie in his arms and turned her to face him.

"Bonnie! Are you alright?" he asked urgently.

"What's up with this chica?" Carmen asked bewildered.

"I'm fine." Bonnie replied weakly. She was leaning on Mason's broad chest for support. She couldn't stand on her own.

"I'm outta here!" Carmen said as she bolted to her table where Tasha and Diego were waiting.

Mason helped Bonnie back to the table where an alarmed Ric and Stefan were waiting. He helped her in the chair before sitting in his own.

"What happened over there?" Ric asked concerned. He passed a glass of water her way.

"It's hard to put into words." Bonnie answered. She took the glass and sipped tentatively from it.

"Did you have another vision?" Stefan asked intuitively.

Bonnie nodded. "It was more than a vision, though. I didn't just see something. It was like she connected with all of my sense. I could feel what Carmen was feeling, hear what she heard, see what she saw; it's as overwhelming." Bonnie explained.

"Take your time." Stefan advised compassionately.

"The whole experience was so animalistic. What Carmen felt was so primal and basic." Bonnie trailed off. She looked up at Stefan before speaking again. "I didn't know people could feel that way."

"It's ok, Bonnie." Stefan reiterated.

"Yeah, we are all right here for you." Mason agreed.

"It wasn't just what I felt." Bonnie struggled to explain. "I saw the world through her eyes."

"And what did she see?" Mason asked.

"Tyler." Bonnie answered. "She saw wolf Tyler. What's more, he saw her and he didn't attack her. The look he gave her…" Bonnie trailed off.

"What about it?" Mason prompted. He was anxious he hear any information about his nephew.

"It's hard to explain. I guess I would call it seductive." Bonnie said.

"You mean Tyler is trying to seduce that girl?" Ric asked doubtfully.

"I not so sure she is just a girl." Stefan said as she glanced at the table with Carmen, Tasha and Diego.

"I agree." Mason said looking at the table as well.

"Agree about what?" Ric asked.

"Carmen's a werewolf." Bonnie said filling in the plot for Ric. "That explains the vision I had. It wasn't the human Carmen eyes I was seeing though. I was her in her werewolf form."

"And that's when she had encounters with Tyler." Mason stated.

"You mean Tyler and Carmen have," Ric paused. "You know, mated?"

"Mated?" Mason asked, clearly offended. "You make them sound like animals."

"That's not what I meant!" Ric said defensively.

"Guys, calm down." Stefan interrupted. He looked at Bonnie. "There's something else. What is it, Bonnie?"

"The look that he gave her… Well if they mated or not, it still gave me hope. It was the first time since his transformation into a wolf that his eyes haven't been filed with anger and contempt and rage. We can save him. I can undo all of this bad…" Bonnie said overcome by emotion.

It was the first time since that fateful night in the woods that she really felt like they could get Tyler back. Mason reached over and wiped a tear from her face. He then placed his hand on top of hers on the table.

"We are going to make everything right, Bonnie." Mason promised her. Bonnie smiled slightly at his reassurance.

Ric gave Stefan a disapproving look. He didn't like the way Mason was getting so close to Bonnie nor that she seemed to be falling for his act. Ric wasn't sure if Bonnie was actually receptive to Mason's advances or if she was oblivious the fact that Mason was developing serious feelings for her. He'd known another beautiful woman who was completely naive to the affect she had on men: Isobel. That was one the biggest challenges he faced in his marriage.

"So what does all this mean?" Ric asked loudly, eager to break up the tender moment between Mason and Bonnie.

"I am not sure if that changes how we proceed at all." Stefan answered with it became clear Bonnie wasn't going to. He looked at Bonnie to see if he agreed with his assessment. Stefan could tell from the look on her face Bonnie was up to something. She was pensive and plotting. Stefan knew she was devising a plan.

"What's that look about?" Stefan asked her.

"I think we should go to the fair." Bonnie declared.

"What, you want you look for Tyler from the top of the Ferris wheel?" Ric joked.

Bonnie smiled at his attempted levity. "No, I want to run into Carmen again. If I touch her maybe I can get another vision or some other clue as to where Tyler is."

"Are you insane?" Ric asked. "You were barely able to stand the last time your touched her!"

"I wasn't prepared last time." Bonnie said dismissively. "I'm ready this time."

"How are you ready for the unexpected?" Ric challenged. "I hate this plan. It's too risky."

"Stefan?" Bonnie said looking for support.

Stefan shook his head. "I agree with Ric."

"There has to be a better way." Ric decided. "Besides, Jeremy would kill us if anything happened to you." Ric deliberately said her boyfriend's name to bring Jeremy to the front of Bonnie's mind.

"Do any of you have a better plan about how to find Tyler?" Bonnie asked knowing they didn't. "Then Carmen is the best option. Even if I don't touch her to try to get another vision we should at least speak to her to see what she knows."

"I think we should give Bonnie's idea a try." Mason stated. Ric sighed angrily and leaned back in his chair.

"Fine, we'll go to the fair." Stefan conceded.

"Good. I want to stop at our motel first. If we are going out in this heat I want to change clothes." Bonnie informed them. "Let's pay the bill and rock and roll."

"Stefan, it's your turn." Ric said handing the receipt to him.

"I'm going to the bathroom. Meet you guys up front." Bonnie said.

"Actually, I'll meet you guys right at the fair." Mason sated standing. "I want to stop at my hotel first too and change shoes."

"Cool. See you there." Bonnie said walking in the back towards the bathroom.

Mason took a $10.00 bill out of his wallet and tossed it towards Stefan. "I'll pay for my own food, vampire."

Stefan just shook his head and walked away leaving the money on the table.

Ric looked at them both before putting the money in his pocket. "This will get us on a ride or two at the fair." He joked. Mason turned to walk away when Ric called out his name.

"What do you want?" Mason demanded.

"I want you to know I am on to your little game." Ric answered.

"What game?" Mason asked.

"The one you are playing with Bonnie. You know the one where you pretend to give a damn about her. She's still young. She may fall for your act, but I see right through it."

"It's no act." Mason stated. "I really do like Bonnie."

"Well if you really care for her you would look out for her, and not just blindly agree to everything she says."

"That's not what I am doing." Mason said defensively. "I really do think going to fair is a good idea."

"Sure you do." Ric sarcastically stated.

"Why am I defending myself to you? I don't give a damn what you think." Mason retorted and then stormed out of the restaurant.

Bonnie returned to the table just as Stefan returned from paying the bill. "Ready?" she asked?

"Let's go." Ric answered.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Jeremy turned down the path way that lead to the door of Grams house. It was a warm day and he was excited that he didn't have to work. He just had to take care of one little thing first.

He walked slower then he usually did. He wasn't looking forward to this. He was just there to return Tim's notebook that was left at the Grille, but given the way Tim stormed out last time Jeremy saw him, he wasn't sure what to expect.

Maybe he didn't have to see Tim at all. Maybe he could just put it in the mailbox and call it a day. No, that wouldn't work. Like it or not, Tim and Bonnie were pretty close. Jeremy could feel it through the connection he had with Bonnie. This man meant a great deal to her and for her sake, Jeremy was determined to get along with him.

He wasn't paying attention to where was walking a just tripped over an uneven concrete slab in the walk. Jeremy stumbled, but kept his balance. In the process however, the notebook fell from his grasp. As he picked it up, it blew open a loose page was caught in the breeze.

Jeremy swore quietly and chased after it. He reached it in bushes beneath the living window that was the front of the house. He ears perked up as he heard Tim's voice from inside the house. He was on his laptop video chatting with someone. Instinctively Jeremy ducked beneath the window and listened to conversation. He couldn't explain why he hiding, just that he felt that he should.

"Oh Lucy, you don't know how good it is to talk to another witch!" Time said. He plopped down on the couch which was right by the open window.

"What are you talking about? You get to talk to my cousin Bonnie all the time." Lucy replied.

"But she's gone now. Off to find that werewolf. And she hasn't even called to give me updates." Tim whined. "I'm forced to get up dates from her boyfriend."

"Jeremy?" Lucy questioned. "You said he was hot right? So it can't be all bad to talk to him."

'_What!__'_ Jeremy thought. '_Tim__said__I__'__m__hot?__'_

"He's a kid." Tim said waiving his hands. "Besides that, he's Bonnie's boyfriend and I am fairly certain he's not gay, so he does me no good. Add to all that to fact that they don't know I'm gay-"

"You still haven't told them!" Lucy interrupted. "Why the hell not!"

"Because I don't tell anybody I'm gay!" Tim stated.

"You told me," Lucy countered.

"No, I didn't. If you'll recall, you found out on your own. We were teenagers. It was one of times you were in Mystic Falls visiting Shelia you came to Club Oz looking for me. You busted in Jason and I making out. So I didn't really have to tell you I was gay. You saw it with your own eyes."

"I remember now!" Lucy said with humor in her voice. "You two making out, it was kind of hot!"

"At some point, you are going to have to get over your crush on me, Lucy." Tim said smiling. "I play for the other team."

"A girl can dream, can't she?" Lucy added with a chuckle. "But I'll take your advice to move on if you take mine: tell Bonnie and the others that you're gay. I don't think they'll care."

"And how is that conversation supposed to go?" Tim asked exasperated. "Oh hey little sis, there something I've been meaning to tell you. You remember that time I stumbled upon you and your guy getting your groove on and I was total dick to him? Well, don't worry – it's not because I don't like him. Just the opposite in fact. I was turned on by seeing him half naked!"

Lucy laughed at his over exaggerated scenario. "Exactly, except leave the part out about being turned on by her guy. She is the Millennial Witch. She could get mad and cast a spell on you. You could end up being straight!"

"Me, liking girl parts – EWW!" Tim joked and he and Lucy both laughed.

Meanwhile Jeremy was freaking out underneath the window. Did Tim really just admit that he had a crush on him? This was too surreal.

"There are worse fates then being heterosexual, you know." Lucy said.

"I can't think of any." Tim replied. "I like myself just the way I am."

"Then stop whining and tell your friends!" Lucy ordered. "That way you and Bonnie can go on a double date and you won't have to hide the fact that you're ogling her boyfriend."

"You're terrible!" Tim said smiling. "Besides, I don't really ogle Jeremy. He's cute, but not my type."

'_Not__his__type?__What__does__he__mean__by__that?__'_ Jeremy thought indignantly. '_Wait__a__minute__ – __what__the__hell__am__I__thinking!__'_

"It's been so long since I had a boyfriend that everybody is starting to look good to me." Tim continued.

"You're just hard up. Find the gay scene in Mystic Falls, get laid and you'll feel be better." Lucy ordered. "Listen, I gotta run. You want to video chat at the same time tomorrow?"

"You bet, Luce." Tim replied. "Love ya babe."

"You too, fancy pants. See ya tomorrow."

Jeremy heard Tim close the lap top and walk out of the living room. He stayed under the bush trying to process what he just learned. What the hell was he supposed to do with this knowledge?

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Excuse me, mister," a little blond girl said to Stefan. She was close to crying. "Have you seen my mommy?"

They had been at the carnival for all of 10 minutes before the child approached him. Stefan knelt down to speak to the girl who couldn't have been more than 6. "Uh, who's your mommy?"

"She was right here and then she stopped he help Stevie with his shoe and I kept walking and now I can't find them!" Tear began to flow from the girls face as she broke down crying.

"It's OK." Stefan comforted the little girl. "We'll help you find your mother."

"You promise?" The little girl questioned.

"I promised." Stefan assured her. "First you have to stop crying and tell me what your mother looks like."

The little girl shrugged. "Everyone says she looks me."

Bonnie and Ric chuckled and Stefan gave them an exasperated look. "You could help instead of just laughing." Stefan admonished.

"You're right." Bonnie said still smiling. She knelt down beside Stefan and the girl. "What's your name, sweetheart?"

Before the child could answer a mother ran up with a toddler in her arms screaming "Cameron! Oh thank God! I was so worried!"

"Mommy!" Cameron cried racing into her mother's arms.

"Cammy, why did you run off like that! You scared me half to death!"

"I didn't mean to Mommy." Cammy explained.

"Well talk about it at home. Come on. It's time to go now." The mother stated standing up. She took Cameron by the hand.

"Hold on Mommy!" Cammy said pulling away. She ran over to Stefan and threw herself into hug on his legs.

"Hey, what's this for?" Stefan asked patting the little girl on the back.

"You promised to find my mommy and you did." Cammy replied.

The mother smiled at Stefan. "Thank you." She stated. "Now come on Cammy. It's time to go."

"Bye mister!" Cammy yelled happily running to take her mother hand.

Stefan shook his head and walked over to Bonnie and Ric. Bonnie promptly kissed him on the cheek and then used her thumb to wipe off excess lip gloss.

"You're a good guy, Stefan Salvatore." Bonnie explained the reason for the kiss.

"You're alright yourself." Stefan replied.

"See, isn't this more fun than you thought it would be?" Bonnie asked as they began to walk around the fair ground. She had a spool of blue cotton candy in one hand and a paper fan in another. "It's been a while since we had any fun."

"This isn't supposed to be fun." Ric replied. He was using the carnival booklet given to them when they entered the fairgrounds as a fan to cool him off. "We are here for a reason."

"Oh stop being such a grouch." Bonnie chided. She stopped waiving her fan long enough to pinch some of the sugary treat off of the stick and shove it in her mouth. "We're getting the job done. We are waiting for Carmen and the others to arrive. Nothing saying we can't have a little fun while we wait."

"You hear her, Stefan?" Ric asked. "The next thing you know she'll want to ride the roller coaster." Ric joked.

"I like roller coasters." Stefan replied plucking some of Bonnie's cotton candy off of the paper cone. Bonnie chuckled.

"Even Stefan agrees." Bonnie stated smiling. "Besides, it's not like they are going to be hard to spot. This place is practically empty. I wonder why that is." Bonnie said surveying the area. There couldn't have been more than 20 people on the fair grounds.

"No one is here because it is a billion degrees." Ric answered. He used the back of his hand to wipe his forehead. "I'm sweating my ass off here."

"It is really hot." Bonnie agreed. They sat on bench shaded the by the giant sign of one of the rides. Bonnie noticed Stefan wasn't nearly as affected by the heat as she and Ric were. "Do vampires sweat, Stefan?"

"Not really," he replied shaking his head. He sat down on the bench next to Bonnie. "It's one of the benefits of having a lower body temperature naturally. Extreme heat doesn't bother me too much."

"Hey look." Ric said getting their attention.

"What?" Bonnie asked standing. "You see Carmen?"

"No," Ric shook his head. "But it's someone else we know." He waived as Mr. Johnson, the motel Manager walked by. The manager didn't waive, but hurried away.

Bonnie frowned. "I wonder why he's here."

"I am going to go out on a limb and say to enjoy the fair." Ric answered.

"I guess." Bonnie stated sitting again. "I wouldn't have thought this was his scene."

"Oh yeah, and what would be his scene?" Ric asked curious as to why Bonnie had such feeling towards a man that to his knowledge, they barely knew.

"Someplace dark and dirty." Bonnie answered. "He's a creep. He thought I was a prostitute when he saw Mason in my room last night. "

"Really?" Ric asked with a smile.

"Yes really, and it's not funny!" Bonnie protested. "He's a jerk."

"It was an honest mistake." Ric said laughing.

"Honest mistake!" Bonnie said swatting him with her paper fan. "I am NOT a hooker!"

"Pretty young lady travelling with three guys – I could see how he could make the leap." Stefan teased Bonnie.

"You too, Stefan?" Bonnie said giving him a playful shove. He threw one arm around her shoulders and gave her an affectionate squeeze.

"We're just giving you a hard time." Stefan said smiling. "No sane person would actually mistake you for a hooker."

"Bingo!" Ric declared breaking up the banter. He stood up and pointed in the distance. "There's Tasha and Diego."

"That means Carmen should be around her somewhere." Stefan said looking around.

"Bonnie!" Mason cried from behind her. She turned and saw him jogging towards the group.

"You see what he wants. We are going to look around for Carmen." Stefan stated. He and Ric walked away from Bonnie. She waited while Mason caught up to her.

"Hey there." Bonnie said when Mason finally reached her. "I was wondering if you were ditching us today."

"No, nothing like that." Mason said. "I had to go back to my hotel to get something."

"You ready to get to work?" Bonnie asked. "We saw Tasha and Diego so we figure Carmen must be around here somewhere too." She began to walk towards Stefan and Ric, who had already engaged Tasha & Diego in conversation, when Mason gently grabbed her arm.

"Hold on a second, Bonnie." He released her as she turned to face him. "I have a couple of questions for you about Tyler."

"What do you want to know?" Bonnie asked curious about where this conversation was headed.

"Is using the Moonstone really the only way to cure him?"

"It's the only way we've found so far, yes." Bonnie stated.

"So without the Moonstone, Tyler is destined to stay an animal forever?"

"I have a friend who is also a witch that is doing more research on it. He hasn't turned up anything yet, but I've not given up hope, so don't you give up hope either."

"I haven't. I am actually more convinced now that we were fated to meet."

"What do you mean?" Bonnie asked confused.

"It wasn't a coincidence that we ran into each other. We both want to save Tyler and we need each other to complete the job."

"Mason, I don't understand what you are talking about."

"You're a witch with the power to reverse the spell on Tyler, right?" Mason stated. Bonnie nodded her head. "All you need is the Moonstone." He stated. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the smooth white stone. He held it up before Bonnie.

"Is that what I think it is?" Bonnie marveled.

"Yes, it's the Moonstone. It's been in Lockwood family possession for generations. When I was back in Mystic Falls for Richard's funeral, I took it." Mason lowered the stone and looked Bonnie directly in the eyes. "I wanted to tell you I had this earlier, but I didn't know if I could. This is one of our family's most valuable possessions. We guard it with our lives. I had to be sure I could trust you."

"I understand." Bonnie said. She thought of the many items of Grams that she couldn't share with anyone and immediately sympathized with Mason's hesitation to let her know about the Moonstone.

Mason took her hand in his and gave the Moonstone to her. "Bonnie, there is no doubt in my mind that I can trust you with this."

Bonnie felt a surge of energy go through her with the transference. "Wow. I can feel energy flowing through it." She looked down at the artifact. "It's beautiful." She held it up to the sun to get a better look. In that instant, all hell broke loose.

Bonnie felt all of her power drain from her body. The stone seem to be sucking her very essence from her. The blitzkrieg was so immediate that she didn't have a chance to cry out before falling to the ground exhausted.

Rays of pure white light poured from the stone. They acted on their own accord. One struck Mason with enough force to bring him down to his knees. Two other rays lights shot forward. One stuck Diego and another Carmen. The lights momentarily blinded everyone in the immediate area.

When their vision returned, Stefan and Ric found themselves facing two disorientated werewolves and a dazed Tasha.

"Oh shit." Ric whispered as the gravity of the situation set in on him.

Stefan reacted immediately. Using his super speed he snatched Tasha out of the way just as Diego was about to attack. With a spectacular leap, Stefan made it to the top of the nearby fun house and set Tasha down.

"You should be safe here." Stefan stated as he began to walk away.

"Safe!" Tasha exclaimed. "What the hell is going on? Where did those giant wolves come from and where are Diego and Carmen?"

"Later." Stefan said before he leapt down from the roof of the funhouse.

"Noo!" Tasha yelled fearful that Stefan would be hurt or killed by jumping from the building at this height. She ran to the edge of the building and was surprised to see that Stefan had landed safely and was heading towards the flock of screaming people. "How the hell did he do that?" Tasha marveled as she watched him go to work.

Prepared to defend himself and others, Ric took a switch blade out of his pocket. Sensing him as the biggest threat, Werewolf Carmen charged and tackled him knocking the knife from his hand. He had his forearm against her throat, trying desperately to keep her from biting his head off. With his other hand he struggled to reach the knife that seemed just beyond his grasp. Frantic, he brought his knee up into her underbelly with as much force as he could muster. The wolf grunted but didn't get off of him. It was enough. He had enough wiggle room to now grab the knife. As soon as she fingers wrapped around the he handle Ric brought his free arm around and jabbed the knife into Carmen's side.

The beast howled in pain and fell off of Ric. Hastily he stood and began to back away. His trouble wasn't over, however. Werewolf Diego, alert by his sister's pained cry, set his sights on Ric. The beast had chased away the hot dog vendor and was raiding his abandoned cart. He now had Ric as a target. Using his super speed he charged.

Ric turned and ran, but he knew he didn't stand a chance. He took a moment to glance behind him just to see Werewolf Diego leap in the air to bring him down. Ric shut his eyes and steeled himself for the inevitable contact.

It never happened.

Stefan came out of nowhere, sailing through the air met werewolf Diego in the air and slammed the beast to the ground. Diego quickly righted himself and began to attack Stefan. The two parried around each other. Then suddenly Diego struck forward. Stefan side stepped the attack smashed into Diego with a devastating blow to his head. The monster careened through the air and crashed into the side ticket booth. It hurtled through the wall, collapsing the building. Diego did not rise again.

"Wow." Ric stated impressed. "That was one hell of a punch."

Stefan didn't acknowledge his praise. "We gotta find Bonnie." Stefan replied. The duo turned and headed off in the area they last seen her. They didn't get very far before they heard a kid scream. They turned to see that were wolf Carmen had recovered from her blow from Ric. She had a family trapped on top of one of the booths.

Stefan peered closer. The kid that screamed – it was Cammy! He raced toward them.

"I'll distract the wolf! When I do, you guys run!" Stefan called out to the family as he approached. He let Carmen get sight of him. She growled the instant she saw him.

"That's right." Stefan taunted. "Take the bait."

Carmen lost interest in the family and began to come at Stefan. Ric had snuck around and was helping getting everyone off of the booth. The mom handed him the two kids first and then he helped her down.

"Run! Run!" Ric instructed them.

"But mom, we gotta help the nice mister." Cammy pleaded. She pulled away from her mother and headed towards Stefan.

"Cammy NO!" The mother cried.

Wolf Carmen heard all of the commotion and turned to see what was going on. Seeing the young child as easy prey, the beast headed towards her.

"NO!" Stefan cried chasing after them. "I'm the one you want!"

Ric reached the girl first and scooped her up in his arms and began to run. Stefan caught up with Carmen, lowered his shoulder and bowled right into her.

The two tumbled and fell. They rolled and ended up with Carmen on top of Stefan. Carmen snarled and leaned in to bite Stefan. He put his forearm up to protect his face and that is when Carmen teeth sunk into his undead flesh.

Stefan cried out in agony. Suddenly, there was ear splitting bang and Carmen howled and released Stefan's arm. The wolf had been shot! Using super speed, the wolf raced away.

Cradling his bitten arm, Stefan sat up to see what happened. He looked and saw Mason with Bonnie slung across one should and a smoking 9 mm gun in his other hand.

Ric, who had already deposited Cammy back safely into her mother's arms, went to help Stefan up.

"Let me help you." Ric commanded putting one of Stefan's arms around his shoulder. The two walked towards Mason. "Where'd you get the gun?"

"One of the carnies had it. He didn't know what to do with so I knocked him out and took it." Mason explained. He'd placed the gun in his waist band and was helping Ric with Stefan.

"What happened to Bonnie?" Ric asked.

"I don't know." Mason answered. He glanced at the wounded the vampire Ric was supporting. "Things just went from bad to worse."

XOXOXOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie eyes fluttered as consciousness slowly came to her. She raised her hand to her head and rubbed her temples. This was the worst headache she ever had.

"Did somebody get the license plate number of that bus?" Bonnie mumbled to herself in reference to how she felt as she sat up in her motel room. She looked around. Now one was there and the room was dark. She swung her feet over the side of the bed and tried to stand. A wave of nausea swept over her and she fell back on the bed.

"That didn't go well," she told herself. "What happened?" she wondered aloud. The last thing she remembered was being at the fair. Stefan and Ric were talking with Diego and Tasha and Carmen joined them. Mason gave her the Moonstone and she held it up to get a better look at in. Then the damn thing tried to suck the life out of her. From there, everything is a blank. She hoped she didn't ruin their chance to get info about Tyler out of Carmen!

Bonnie heard a noise coming from her bathroom and her head jerked in that direction. She could see light spilling from the crack at the door. Someone was in there. She heard the toilet flush and then the water running. Soon the door open, but who stepped out completely surprised her.

"Jeremy?"

"Thank God you're awake!" Jeremy stated rushing to her side. He pulled her into a crushing hug. "I was so worried about you!"

"I am so happy to see you!" Bonnie exclaimed hugging him with all of her strength. "But what are you doing here?"

Bonnie didn't get an answer to her question. Instead, Jeremy's mouth covered hers in a passionate kiss. In that instant, all rational thought flew from her mind. Being with Jeremy was the only thing that mattered.

"Wow." Bonnie whispered as Jeremy broke the kiss. He chuckled.

"Sorry." Jeremy said as he ran his fingers through her hair. "I didn't mean to cut you off. I have been waiting to do that every since I got here."

"Don't apologize." Bonnie said as she scooted over to make room for him on the bed. He laid next to her. "You have no idea how much I missed you."

"It can't be half as much as I missed you." Jeremy said pulling her close. She laid her head on his chest.

Bonnie smiled against his chest. "We'll have to call it even. Now, are you going to tell me what you are doing here? Not that I am complaining."

"I don't want to." Jeremy stated wrapping his arms around her. "If I do, it'll ruin the moment."

"Unfortunately, this moment can't last forever; no matter how much both of us want it to." Bonnie sat up in the bed. "Something's clearly going on and I should know about it."

"Alright, fine." Jeremy conceded. He reached over the clicked the lamp on the bedside cabinet. "Ric called us after what happened at the fair."

"Because I fainted?" Bonnie asked confused. "You didn't have to come across the state for that."

"No, what happened after that." Jeremy said shaking his head.

"What happened after that? I don't remember?" asked Bonnie.

"What's the last thing you do remember?" Jeremy queried. Bonnie filled him in on her memories. "A lot happened after that. Let me call the others and get them over here. It's probably best if you hear if straight from them and they wanted to know when you woke up anyway."

"The others?" Bonnie questioned with a confused look on her face.

"Elena, Damon, Ric, Tim." Jeremy explained. "The gang's all here."

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Report." Malachi commanded. He was surrounded dozens of his sired vampires in his home just outside of Abingdon.

"Well, as best as I can tell, they are all in bad shape so they called reinforcements." Mr. Johnson spoke.

"What kind of reinforcements?" Malachi asked. After his initial encounter with Bonnie, Stefan, Ric and Mason in the park, Malachi had followed them back to their motel room. It was there he first encountered Mr. Johnson and compelled the hotel manager to keep tabs on the group. Thanks to the motel manger, Malachi knew every move the gang made.

The unwitting slave retrieved a small notepad from the front pocket of his shirt. "Uh, there names are Tim, Damon, Jeremy and Elena." Mr. Johnson stated. He hated being here, though he didn't know why. He loved Malachi and would serve him faithfully, but coming to his house made him uncomfortable.

"Of those two Tim and Damon are the only ones of concern and they don't mean much to me." Malachi stated. "What happened at the fair?"

Mr. Johnson filled Malachi in on all of the details he observed. The vampire seemed pleased with the way things turned out. "And their plan to capture the werewolf?"

"Remains the same as far as I know. The witch will enchant a chain to bind the werewolf and bring him under control."

Malachi approached Mr. Johnson and looked him directly in the eyes. "Go back to the hotel and watch them closely." Malachi compelled the man.

"Yes master." Mr. Johnson said and left the house.

Malachi picked up his phone and dialed a number. "Pearl, it's Malachi."

"You have news for me?" Pearl answered. "You've capture the Lockwood boy?"

"No, not yet." Malachi stated. "But it's only a matter of time."

Pearl swore. "Time is the one thing I don't have! The witch's spells that keep me alive are wearing off! What is the problem?"

"You forget yourself, Pearl." Malachi snapped. "I am not one of your minions to order about."

"No, of course not, Malachi." Pearl stated apologetically.

"I am in your debt and therefore honor bound to help you, but do not test me." The vampire continued. "You are already at death's door. It would be a shame if I were forced to push you over the threshold into the Grim Reaper's cold embrace."

"I apologize, Malachi. It shall not happen again."

"In any event, I do have some good news for you." Malachi stated. "Stefan Salvatore has been bitten by a werewolf. He will die shortly. The other Salvatore brother has arrived in Abingdon along with the witch you warned me about, Tim."

"This is fantastic news!" Pearl stated. "They don't know that by draining the blood of the werewolf that bit him is the cure for Stefan. He shall surely die!"

Malachi ignored her excited rant. He could care less about the petty squabbles between Pearl and the Salvatores. But there was something that did interest him. "Tell me more about this Moonstone. When it came in contact with the witch, it transformed the werewolves in broad daylight. I knew the Moonstone was powerful, buy I didn't know it could do that."

"The Moonstone is what curses our kind from not being able to walk freely in the sun and what limits the werewolves to being bound to the full moon."

"I know all of this." Malachi sated annoyed.

"Yes, of course." Pearl stated smoothly. "With a powerful enough witch, it is also the key to breaking that curse. We could be free to roam whenever we want to."

"Interesting." Malachi stated. "I have a plan to capture werewolf very soon. Hold out until then."

"Thank you, Malachi!" Pearl stated happily.

"You recognize that once I deliver the werewolf to you, my debt to you is paid in full."

"Yes, I do."

"Good. After that, I never expect to hear from you again."

"As you wish, Malachi." Pearl stated. He hung up the phone. A devious smile crept across his face. Pearl always did think small. It was by pure luck on her part that he ended up in her debt. Soon that debt would be repaid and Malachi would have a way to put every vampire on the face of the earth under his control. He just had to act quickly.

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Oh my God! Stefan!" Bonnie exclaimed. The entire gang was the motel room he was sharing with Ric. Since Damon, Elena, Tim and Jeremy arrived there was a bit of shuffling of the rooms. Stefan now sharing with Elena and Ric and Tim had a room. Jeremy was bunking with Bonnie and Damon got his own room.

Jeremy called them all to Bonnie's room and everyone came but Stefan and Damon. Elena was glad to see her best friend and Tim happy to see his "little sister." Their joy was short lived as they told Bonnie what happened after she passed out. She couldn't believe Stefan was bitten by Werewolf Carmen. She insisted on seeing him and the entire party then moved from her room Stefan, which was right next door.

"How are you feeling?" Bonnie asked.

"I've been better." Stefan stated. He was lying in the bed and Elena sat of the head of it next to him. All of the rest were gather around his bed save Damon. He sat off in the corner by himself.

"I would probably feel a little better if you all weren't gathered around my bed like I am dying at this instant. Vampire death by werewolf bite is a slow process, apparently."

"You are not going to die!" Bonnie declared. "We'll find a way to save you. A spell or something…" She looked to Tim as she spoke.

"I've been researching this since Ric called us." Tim spoke up. "I found some spells that will slow the progress of the infection, but none that are a permanent fix. And slowing the process down doesn't stop the pain he'll be in. In fact, it may make it worse."

"Prolonging his agony?" Mason stated. "That doesn't sound very humane."

"Who asked you, asshole?" Damon stated, speaking for the first time. "Why are you even here? It's your fault he is even like this!" He got up from his chair and approached Mason as he spoke.

"Hey man, I was just giving my opinion. Clearly it's your brother's choice." Mason said trying to defuse the situation. But Damon would not be put off.

"We don't need your damn opinion!" Damon said shoving Mason. "As a matter of fact, we don't need you either!" Damon's eyes became bloodshot and he bared his fangs. He pushed Mason up against a wall. Everyone cried out for him to stop. Ric and Jeremy were trying to pull him off of Mason but he was far too strong.

"Let me go Dickhead!" Mason managed to sputter out. Damon had him by the throat so it very difficult for him to speak. He struggled vainly to get free.

"This seems fair to me." Damon began. "A werewolf bite is killing my brother so a vampire bite should kill you, werewolf!"

"Damon, no!" Bonnie cried. She tried to use her powers to stop him. Nothing happened and she nearly passed out. Bonnie slumped over and Elena caught her. "Bonnie!" she screamed.

Tim rushed to her side. "You're still too weak to use your powers. But allow me." Tim focused on Damon. The vampire soon released the werewolf as waves of pain assaulted him. Tim caused dozens of blood vessels to pop in Damon's head causing him a brutal amount of pain.

Ric and Jeremy hauled the almost unconscious Damon back to the other side of the room. Mason coughed as he greedily sucked in air.

"I'm going to stop, Damon. But if you make one wrong move I'll teleport your lungs to the outside of the body. I understand it's very painful for them to grow back." Tim threatened. He ended his assault and relief flooded through the vampire as his brain began to heal itself.

"You need to calm down, Damon." Stefan said from his bed. "I told you Mason saved my life back at the fair."

"Yeah, he's on our side." Ric agreed.

"Whatever." Damon said angrily.

"Bonnie, you don't look so good." Jeremy said going to be by her. "What happened?"

"I tried to use my powers and almost passed out." Bonnie explained. She looked to Tim. "What's going on?"

"It's the Moonstone. It sapped your strength." Tim stated.

"How?" Bonnie asked.

"It did what it was created to do: transform werewolves. When you held it up to the sun, you activated it and transformed the 3 werewolves in your vicinity. That takes a lot of power and you passed out. You haven't recovered from that experience yet."

"Is that all?" Bonnie said sarcastically.

"Be grateful you're the Millennial Witch. Were you anybody else the Stone pulling that much power would have killed you."

"Instead my brother is the one who is dying." Damon said angrily.

"Damon," Stefan said trying to sooth his brother's anger.

"Don't Damon me." he snapped.

"We don't need this right now." Bonnie stated. "We should be focusing on way to save Stefan."

"Don't you try to act like you're in charge and you know what you are doing!" Damon roared. "All of this is your fault! You concoct this hair brained scheme to go across the state to what – save Tyler Lockwood just to ease your guilty conscious? Look how well that turned out for you. You didn't save Tyler and now Stefan is dying too. Bang up job, Bonnie!"

"Back off Damon." Jeremy said rising to Bonnie's defense.

"Or what?" Damon challenged.

"Or you'll deal with me." Tim stated going to stand next to Bonnie and Tyler.

"You know, I've had just about enough of you, boy witch." Damon spat with contempt.

"Oh really? Well we are all more than a little tired of you!" Tim countered.

"All of you stop it!" Elena yelled crying. "None of this bickering is helping Stefan!"

"She's right." Ric said moving closer to Elena and Stefan. "Instead of fighting each other, we should be working together."

"I got a better idea." Damon announced. He then stalked out of the motel room into the dark night.

"Damon wait!" Bonnie called after him.

"Let him go." Mason said. "He's not adding anything to this mix but misery."

"We need him!" Bonnie said as she stood to follow him. Jeremy followed her out of the motel room. They ran to catch up with the fast walking Damon. When they got close Bonnie stopped and turned to Jeremy. "Hey, give me a second with him."

"Why?" Jeremy asked not trying to hide the annoyance in his voice.

"You two hate each. This will be easier without me having to overcome that. Trust me?" Bonnie asked.

"Love you." Jeremy responded. Bonnie smiled and pecked him on the lips. She than ran to catch Damon. "Damon! Wait up!"

"Go back to the others." Damon said not bothering to look back. Bonnie reached his side and matched his fast pace.

"So, I'm curious. You accused me of not knowing what I am doing. What's your plan to help Stefan?"

Damon finally looked at her and simply replied "Go away."

"No, I'm worried about you." Bonnie stated. Damon gave her a crazy look. "Besides, you really don't want me to go away. You wanted me to follow you."

"You think so?" Damon said sarcastically.

"I know so. If you didn't, you would have left the motel room using you super speed making it impossible for me to follow. Since you didn't, you really didn't want to go off on your own."

"You think you know everything, don't you." Damon sneered.

"Not everything, but I do know you." said Bonnie. "We have an understanding, remember?" She ran and got in front of him and placed her hand out with her palm against his chest. "So stop, and let's talk about this."

Damon finally stopped walking. "What's to talk about?" Damon asked. "Stefan is dying of a werewolf bite."

"And that scares you, doesn't it?" Bonnie said pointedly.

"Don't be ridiculous." Damon said quickly.

"It scares the hell out of me, and he's not my brother who I've known of over 150 years." Bonnie shot back at him. She placed her hand on his chest. "Damon, it's ok to feel something," she added compassionately. "I feel powerless to help him and it's driving me nuts. It's so frustrating. For someone like you who is so used to taking action to get what you want, this has to be agony. I'm sorry."

Damon stared at Bonnie. She seemed genuine in her compassion for him. And though he loathed admitting it, she did seem to understand him. He thought back to the spell Michelle casted in the park. She said it would soften Bonnie's heart towards him. Perhaps it was time to see just how soft her heart had become. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "I hate being helpless."

Bonnie smiled and nodded her head. "Don't we all? But the best way we can help Stefan is by working together. He's needs you right now, Damon. We all do."

"What about you, Bonnie?" Damon asked.

"What about me?" Bonnie asked confused. "You know I will do everything I can to help Stefan."

"That's not what I meant." Damon stated. "You seemed to think I needed you to chase after me tonight. But what about you? Do you need me?" he rand a finger down her face.

"Damon, this isn't the time for this." Bonnie stated taking a step back.

"I disagree. If there is one thing this whole ordeal with Stefan has taught me is that life is short. We shouldn't put off what we want." Damon stepped forward closing the gap between them. "So, what do you want, Bonnie?"

"I… I," Bonnie stammered. She was at a loss for words. Why was her mind foggy right now? There was just something so damn sensual about Damon!

"What's the matter?" Damon asked stepping even closer. They were mere inches apart now and she could smell his intoxicating scent. "You used to be so sure about what you wanted. Having second thoughts?"

Second thoughts? With Damon this close she wasn't have any thoughts!

"It isn't so easy being a seductress, is it?" Damon practically whispered in her ear. She shivered and he felt it. A Cheshire smile crept across his face. He loved that he could evoke such a carnal reaction from her.

"I'm not a seductress." Bonnie objected, trying to gain some perspective. "I haven't seduced anyone."

"Haven't you?" Damon challenged. He took her face in both his hands. She marveled that hands so violent could feel so gentle. "Tell me you don't want my touch. Tell me you don't want this." Damon stated as he moved in to kiss her.

"I want…" Bonnie began again. She trailed off, but for different reasons this time. She felt like someone gripped the insides of her stomach. Instantly she knew the source of the problem. "Jeremy!" she exclaimed jumping back from Damon.

"You want Jeremy?" Damon bit out angrily. He was this close! He could feel her softening towards him and bam! She shut him down.

"No!" Bonnie replied, and then contradicted herself. "I mean yes, I do want Jeremy, but that's not what I meant right now." Bonnie was speaking in a rushed tone. She began to move away from him. "Jeremy's in trouble! Come on. He needs our help!" Bonnie took off running.

Damon slowly followed. It might serve his purposes more to have the boy wonder out of the picture. However, if Bonnie suspected he didn't at least try to stop harm from coming to the boy, she would never forgive him.

Damon caught up to Bonnie who had stopped running. She was turning around in circles, frantically looking for Jeremy.

"Where did he go?" Bonnie asked desperately. "He was right here!"

"Calm down." Damon said. "He probably got upset watching you seduce me and went back to your room. You know how temperamental your lover boy can be."

"I wasn't seducing you Damon and I know he's in trouble. I can feel it!" Bonnie stated. "We have to find him!"

"You and your feelings." Damon said with annoyance in his voice. He clearly didn't believe her. "I bet you he's fine."

Before more could be said, they heard Elena frantically yelling their names.

"Do you still think he is fine?" Bonnie sneered while running back towards their motel room. They met Elena outside of Stefan's room. "What is it?" Bonnie asked breathlessly.

"It's Jeremy!" Elena said excitedly. "He's been taken!"

"What?" Bonnie cried. "What do you mean?"

"This note was attached to a brick that was thrown through the window." Elena said handing it to Bonnie. It simply read: We have Jeremy. Do nothing and await further instructions.

"Who took him?" Damon demanded.

"We don't know." Ric answered. "After the brick came through the window I looked around but I didn't see anyone."

"This can't be happening." Bonnie said in disbelief. How did things spiral so far out of control?

Tim then stepped out of Stefan's room and shut the door behind him. "Guys, I've cast a spell on Stefan to slow down the effect of the werewolf bite, but he needs to rest. Maybe we can take this to Bonnie's room next door?"

"I don't want to leave Stefan alone." Elena objected.

"I'll sit with him." Ric offered. Elena nodded and Ric entered the room.

"I'll look around for more clues." Mason stated and he began to his search.

Bonnie led the rest of the crew into her room. As soon as they were in the room Bonnie closed her eyes and started concentrating. The lights flickered and items began to shake.

"Bonnie, what are you doing?" Elena asked concerned. Bonnie's nose began to bleed from the effort. "Stop it!" she demanded. "You're not strong enough yet!

Bonnie opened her eyes to see the concerned face of Elena. "Nothing," she said as she wiped the blood from her nose.

"What?" Elena asked.

"I was trying sense Jeremy through our connection. Nothing! I can't feel him!"

"What does that mean?" Elena asked concerned.

"I don't know." Bonnie said trying to hold back tears.

-END FLASH BACK-

"And that's everything guys." Bonnie stated.

"So where does that leave us?" Tim asked.

"Right where we were before she began her little story." Damon said with frustration. "Jeremy is missing and Stefan is still dying."

Before they could continue Mason came back through the door. "I searched all around, but I couldn't find any clues as to who kidnapped Jeremy."

"Thanks for trying." Elena said.

"This is ridiculous." Damon said as he stood to leave.

"Where are you going?" Bonnie asked.

"Out," was his only reply.

"They are picking us off one by one." Bonnie stated. "We should stay together." Damon ignored her and stormed out of the room. "Damon!" Bonnie cried out. She moved to follow but Elena stopped her.

"Let him go." Elena advised. "He needs to blow off steam."

"I think we should all get some rest. It's been a long day." Tim said standing. Everybody else followed suit. "If anybody hears anything, be sure to get us all together so we can act as a team."

Elena gave Bonnie a quick hug. "I don't know how, Elena, but I will make this right." Bonnie promised. Elena gave her a small smile and then left the room with the rest of the crew save Mason.

"Did you need something, Mason?" Bonnie asked.

"I just wanted to make sure you are ok. This is the first chance we've had to speak since you passed out at the fair." Mason stated sitting down on the free bed. "I was very worried about you."

"It was sweet of you to be concerned, but you can see that I'm fine." She sat on the other bed in the room and began to take off shoes.

"That whole scene at the fair was crazy." Mason said rubbing his neck. "It was like the instant you held the Moonstone to the sunlight it went nuts."

"Sorry about that." Bonnie said ruefully. "If I'd known that would happen, I would have kept it in the shadows. Where is the Moonstone now?"

"My room. I picked it up after I made sure you were alright." Mason looked seriously. "You know, if you hadn't lifted the curse from the Lockwood line, I would have been transformed into my werewolf form at the fair too."

"I don't even want to think about how things would have turned out then." Bonnie said shaking her head. "I'm sorry I don't have better control over my powers."

He smiled. "You can stop apologizing, Bonnie. All of the evil in the world isn't your fault."

"No, but what's happening to your family is my fault." Bonnie stated.

"You didn't put the werewolf curse on us." Mason argued. "Besides, I should actually be thanking you."

"For what?"

"Well, last month for the first time in a long time, I was able to enjoy the full moon as a human. I usually dread the three days of the month, but not recently. Now, I am human, with only the good sides of being a werewolf. You made that possible."

"And yet, you gave me the moonstone – the means for undoing all of this. Why?"

"Because it unfair to Tyler to be saddled with this curse."

"It's that simple?" Bonnie asked.

"It's that simple." Mason confirmed. "It's kind of crazy to think about. I know we haven't known each other very long, but I care about you." Mason looked her dead in the eyes and then added. "A lot."

Bonnie squirmed uncomfortably on the bed. "Mason, I-" Bonnie began but he cut her off.

"I know you don't feel the same way I do, but after what happened at the fair, I couldn't not tell you how I feel."

"A lot has happened today." Bonnie stated changing the subject. She rose the bed paced the room.

"Yeah, a very little of it good." Mason agreed. "Speaking of which, whoever took Jeremy could come back for you." Mason asked. "Someone should be with you." He took a step closer. "I could stay, if you like. I already checked out of my hotel room and rented a room here, so it's not like it will be a big hassle in the morning or anything."

Bonnie's head was swimming. Why was he having such an effect on her!

"That won't be necessary!" Bonnie announced abruptly almost jumping away from Mason. "I'll be fine, really."

"Listen, if I made you uncomfortable-" Mason began.

"No, no, it wasn't you." Bonnie said hurriedly. She sighed again and let her arms flop to her sides. "As clichéd as this sounds, believe me when I say it's no you, but it's me. I am just really tried. In between the Moonstone sucking half the life out me, finding out about Stefan and then Jeremy's kidnapping, I am just drained."

"Oh yeah, I totally get it." Mason stated. "I'll get out of here and let you get some rest." Mason leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. "Good night, Bonnie. Stay safe."

"Good night Mason." Bonnie stated. She looked the door behind him and then collapsed into her bed.

'_Why__is__this__happening__to__me?__'_ Bonnie thought. _'__I__should__be__focused__on__Jeremy__and__how__to__get__him__back,__not__flirting__with__Mason__and__certainly__not__almost__kissing__Damon!__' _Bonnie admonished herself. _'__How__would__Jeremy__feel__if__he__knew__what__I__was__doing__right__now?__Jeremy.__He__is__my__everything.__I__don__'__t__know__what__I__would__do__without__him.__He__is__probably__so__scared__right__now.__I__pray__to__God__that__he__is__alright!__That__'__s__it,__girl!__Enough__of__this__complaining.__Pull__yourself__together!__Jeremy__needs__you!__'_

It was then that Bonnie decided to stop whining and do whatever was necessary to get Jeremy back - no matter the cost.

XOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie awoke to the sound of her cell phone ringing and vibrating on the night stand next to her bed. Groggily, she reached for it. From the noise it was making someone had sent her a text message. She looked at the time before reading the message. It was barely three hours since she'd fallen asleep.

She read the message and her heart stopped. It was from Jeremy's cell phone.

Come to Forest Hills. Alone. Bring the Moon Stone.

Bonnie gulped. She didn't know what to do. The Moonstone was in Mason's room. Should she tell him about the text? Then she resolved to get more details first. She texted back "When?"

She paced the floor in her motel room waiting for an answer. After a few seconds her phone dinged. She hurriedly looked at it. Now, the phone read.

'_Should__I__tell__the__others?__' _ Bonnie thought to herself. '_No,__Stefan__hurt__because__of__me__and__Jeremy__kidnapped.__Better__to__go__check__out__the__situation__for__myself,__even__if__I__don__'__t__have__the__Moon__Stone.__'_

Bonnie threw on her shoes, grabbed her phone and bolted out of the door. Thunder rumbled across the sky. Bonnie looked up concerned. Ominous clouds darkened the sky, threating to erupt at any moment. She quickly Google mapped the location of the forest. It wasn't close. She wished she'd forced Tim to show her his teleporting trick. Without it, she was stuck. Or maybe not. Was that Mason's truck in the parking lot? She walked over to the vehicle and used her powers to open the door. She slid in the driver's seat again used her gifts to start the engine.

XOXOXOXOXO

Mason woke with a start. He thought he heard his truck starting up. The loud engine on the older model Jeep Wrangler was unmistakable and a very familiar sound to him. In nothing but boxer shorts Mason rushed to the door of his motel and flung it open. He arrived just in time to see Bonnie pulling out of the parking lot in his car.

He bolted out of the door calling for her to stop, but he knew it was too late. Bonnie probably didn't even see him. He swore and then headed back to his room. After quickly dressing he headed to Ric & Tim's room. He would need the hunter and the witch to help with whatever Bonnie was going to do. He pounded on the door urgently.

"What!" Ric answered tearing open the door angrily. He couldn't fathom who would be banging on the door so insistently this late at night.

"It's Bonnie!" Mason replied. He looked pass Ric and could see Tim was sitting up in his bed as well. "We got a problem."

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Bonnie pulled close to the side of the road need the Forest Hills sign. She slowly exited Mason's truck realizing that she had no clue where she was headed. She pulled out her phone and texted a message to Jeremy's phone.

I'm here. Where do I go?

Bonnie walked cautiously into the forest as she awaited a reply. She didn't want to go too far in one direction only to discover she needed to be headed the opposite way. After a few moments the answer came to her phone.

Southwest entrance to the forest. There is a statue of Custer. Meet you there.

Using the compass app on her Driod cell phone, Bonnie hiked along the edge of the forest until she spotted the statue she assumed was Custer. She looked around, but she didn't see anyone. She waited over tens minutes.

Thunder clashed again in the darkening sky. She looked up. Black storm clouds fat with moisture hung over her, waiting to errupt. _'__Just__great.__' _Bonnie thought angrily. '_Not__only__is__Jeremy__'__s__kidnapper__late,__but__I__'__m__going__to__get__rained__on__as__well.__This__is__perfect.__'_

Just when she was about to send another text to the kidnappers, she heard the sound of someone approaching. A fat man emerged from the trees. He was dressed in all black and he had a ski mask on. From what Bonnie could see, he was sweating profusely and she wasn't surprised. It was still very warm.

"Come with me." The rotund man said in a deep voice. The voice was clearly fake- the man was trying to talk with a lower voice that he really had. Bonnie tilted her head and just stared at him. There was something very familiar about him. She knew him from somewhere.

"Are you deaf?" The man asked loudly. "I said come with me." He began to head back into the forest. Bonnie followed.

'_That__'__s__it?__' _Bonnie thought._ '__Just__follow__me?__'_ Something was wrong here."Where's Jeremy?" Bonnie asked.

"You'll see him soon enough." The man replied.

"How do I know he's ok?"

"He's a pain in the ass is what he is." The fat name retorted.

Bonnie smiled. She was glad Jeremy was giving him a hard time. "What do you with me from me?" she asked.

"You'll find out enough." he huffed. "Now shut up and follow me." He paused for a second and then added "Please."

'_Please?__He__knapped__Jeremy__but__he__worried__about__saying__please__and__thank__you?__'_ Bonnie wondered. '_Something__definitely__isn__'__t__right__here.__'_

XOXOXOXOXOXO

"Alright – this is the spot." Mason stated. "Look, there is my Jeep." he said pointing at his car. He was in the passenger seat of Ric car and Tim was in the back.

"I see it." Ric said maneuvering his car to pull up behind it. "It's a good think you have that tracker in your car."

"I spend enough of my free time out in the wild either spelunking or rock climbing. It's real easy to lose your car in places like that so I had the GPS tracker install so I could always find my way back to where I left it." Mason explained. "I never thought I be using the tracker like this." Ric had parked his car now and they all exited.

"Well she's not still in the car." Tim stated the obvious.

"Yes, but she couldn't have gotten very far." Ric stated. Ric looked around and then directly at Tim and Mason. "Oh shit."

"What?" Mason asked.

"I know this place." Ric stated. "This is where Stefan and I found Tyler's den. Whoever lured Bonnie here must know that; this can't be a coincidence. We have to find Bonnie now. She is in more danger than she knows."

"Do you think Tyler is here as well?" Tim asked.

"You better pray he isn't. We can't handle him alone." Ric responded. He went to the trunk of his car and pulled out a rifle and a chain. "But on the off chance he is, it's better to be safe than sorry."

"Is that the chain Bonnie enchanted?" Tim asked.

"Yep. Whoever is bound by this chain has their will stripped away. According to Bonnie, they are at the complete mercy of whoever is in control of the chain."

Tim looked around. "Which way?"

Mason's eyes yellowed and it became clear he was using his lupine senses. "I can smell her." he stated. "This way." He headed southwest with Tim and Ric following.

XOXOXOXOXO

"We are here." the fat man announced as they reached a clearing in the wood. There was a cave to which Bonnie could see light coming from inside, but she couldn't tell who or what was back there.

"What is this place?"

"Our home away from home a few nights of the week every month." The man stated. Bonnie didn't have a clue what he was talking about. "Feel privileged. You're the only human we've ever bought here before." The fat man stopped and then amended his statement. "Well, except your friend Jeremy that is." He turned to face her. "Stay here. I have to let the others know we are back." He instructed. He walked into the cave and Bonnie could see him pull off his ski mask. Even though he was walking away Bonnie recognized him.

It was Kevin – one of Diego's friends. She'd met him at the Italian restaurant while waiting for Mason. Now she also had a pretty good idea of who the others must be. She also thought that if Diego and Carmen are both werewolves, then it a good possibility that Kevin, Russ and Ryan were as well. They must be the pack of animals that Ric and Stefan suspected were hunting with Tyler. Was this there den? Is that with Kevin meant by their home away from home a few days every month?

Now that she knew who the kidnappers where, she was even less sure about their motive. Why take Jeremy?

Bonnie could see their shadows from inside the cave but she couldn't make out what they are saying. She moved closer to the entrance but still couldn't hear anything.

"Makes you wish you had enhanced senses, doesn't it?" Damon whispered sneaking up behind her. He nearly scared her witless caused her to jump. He anticipated that and had his hand clamped firmly on her mouth to prevent her from screaming. "Shhh!" he said smirking.

"Damon!" Bonnie whispered harshly. "What are you doing here?"

"I saw you steal Mason's car back at the motel." Mason whispered. "Since joyriding really isn't your thing I followed you thinking something must be up something. Apparently I was right."

"You can't be here!" Bonnie objected. "These are Jeremy's kidnappers. They texted me and told me to come alone. If I don't do as they say, they'll hurt Jeremy."

"How do you know they won't hurt him anyway? They're kidnappers! You can't trust them."

Bonnie sighed. She could tell Damon wasn't going anyway and although she objected, she felt better that he was there. "Fine, but if you're staying, there's something else you should know. I think these three are all werewolves too."

"Well isn't that just great!" Damon answered too loudly. Bonnie held a finger too her lips indicating that he should be quiet. Damon rolled his eyes.

"If you are going to be here, be useful!" Bonnie pointed in the cage. "What are they saying?"

Damon focused his super hearing. "They are arguing." he answered. "From what I can tell, they don't all agree on the plan. Wait a minute – it doesn't even sound like they have a plan." He paused and listened some more. "One of them thinks they should have asked you for help instead of kidnapping Jeremy to force your hand."

"Help with what?" Bonnie wondered.

"I don't know." Damon replied. He kept listening. "They seem very disorganized. I think we can take them."

"No!" Bonnie whispered forcefully. "I won't risk Jeremy like that."

Damon rolled his eyes again. He was annoyed at her single minded focus on Jeremy. He wondered if she could ever be as devoted to him. He turned his attention back to the cave and then abruptly to Bonnie.

"They're getting ready to come out – all of them. I am going to hide in the trees – to be your ace in the hole. See how much info you can get from them." He began to walk away and turned to add "It shouldn't be hard for a seductress like you."

Bonnie shook her head. He just couldn't leave without getting a dig in! She hated the way he was able to twist situations and rip ugly half truths from them to use against her. She turned her attention back to the cave as she could hear the guys getting closer. Soon, three men emerged, all with ski masks on their face.

"I told you she'd still be here." Kevin said to the others.

"Lucky you." Russ said. Through the small slits in the mask Bonnie could see his pale skin and red hair. "It would suck if she ruined our plan."

"And what a wonderful plan it is." Kevin stated with much sarcasm.

"Shut up." Russ snapped. "It's not like you had a better idea."

"I know who you are." Bonnie interrupted eager to end their pointless banter.

"What?" Russ challenged. He eyed Bonnie skeptically. "You're bluffing."

"No, Russ, I'm not." Bonnie stated using his name to drive her point home. Bonnie had to keep herself from smiling when she noticed his eyes widening in surprise. "So you, Kevin and Ryan can take off those stupid masks. They aren't hiding anything and they have to be hot."

The three men look at each other before removing their ski mask. Kevin wiped the sweat off his face and Ryan ran his fingers though his hair.

"I must have awful hat hair." He stated vainly try to give his hair some volume.

"You've looked better." Bonnie quipped. "Now why don't you tell me what's going on here?"

"Don't play dumb with us, witch. We know what you did." Russ accused her.

Bonnie managed to mask her own surprise at Russ calling her a witch. How could he possibly know? "What are you talking about?"

"We were on our way to meet Diego and Carmen at the carnival when you used the Moonstone to transform them into werewolves." Russ replied.

"How do you know about the Moonstone?" Bonnie asked failing to conceal her shock.

"You'll find me well versed on most areas of the arcane." Kevin responded proudly. Bonnie could almost see his chest swell with pride. She gave him a quizzical looked and he shrugged. "It's kind of a hobby." he stated answering her unasked question, deflated by her response.

"How did you know I was involved?" Bonnie inquired.

"Tasha told us what happened." Ryan explained. "She was quite confused. She doesn't even know werewolves exist, let alone that her boyfriend, his sister and all of his friends are part of the pack. She still isn't exactly sure what happened at the fair. All she knows is that a bright flash of light came from you and then Diego and Carmen were gone and in there place was two giant werewolves."

"From Tasha description, I was able to piece two and two together to deduce you're a witch and using the Moonstone is the only way to make a werewolf transform, outside of the full moon that is." Kevin added.

"You still haven't told me what you want from me." Bonnie said.

"It's really simple – we want you to change Diego and Carmen back to humans." Kevin answered.

"It's bad enough turning into an animal a few days out the month. We don't need you adding to our misery." Ryan lamented.

"And if you don't, we'll hurt your friend." Russ added.

Bonnie's temper flared with the threat to Jeremy. She wanted to use her powers and lash out at the three werewolves, but she thought better of it. Instead, she warned them in a low voice, "Don't threaten Jeremy."

"You're not the one in charge here, Witch." Russ retorted arrogantly. "You'll do what we want, or else."

"Or else what?" Damon demanded suddenly appearing behind the three werewolves.

"Vampire!" Kevin cried out tried to scurry away from Damon. Although all three werewolves jumped when Damon appeared, Russ was the first the respond. He clumsily swung at Damon. The vampire easily dodged the blow. Damon retaliated by grabbing Russ and Ryan by the head and smashing them together. Both men stumbled backwards dazed and collapsed a few feet from Damon.

Kevin tried to run away but Damon was having none of it. "Bonnie – stop him!" he ordered.

Bonnie sighed. She really didn't want things to end up like this. Still, she used her powers and sent a telekinetic wave in Kevin's direction. Surprised to be hit in the chest by the invisible force, Kevin stumbled backwards and tripped over the fallen Russ and Ryan.

"Ow!" Ryan whined as Kevin landed on top of him.

"Sorry!" Kevin apologized. He rolled over on to the ground. "Are you guys ok?"

"Better now that you got your bloated body off of me!" Russ said. "I thought you said she wasn't followed."

"I didn't think she was." Kevin defended himself. "It's not like I ever kidnapped anyone before."

"You probably couldn't get your fat mind off of food long enough to look around." Russ snapped.

"Leave him alone, Russ!" Ryan interrupted. "He was just following your stupid plan!"

"If he was following my plan, he would have noticed that Bonnie was followed!"

"Listen to you three! You're all pathetic!" Damon sneered. "You can't agree on anything. How did you think you could pull off a kidnapping?"

"We don't have to sit here and be insulted by the likes of you, vampire." Russ stated as she tried to stand.

"Yes, you do." Damon stated as she put his foot in Russ's chest and kicked him back to the ground.

"Damon." Bonnie admonished. She wanted him to back off so they could tell her where they had Jeremy stashed.

"Kiss my ass, vampire! You and that black cunt witch can both just go to hell!" Russ declared.

He didn't have a chance to same more. With lightning speed, Damon reached down and snatched Russ up by the throat. The werewolf struggled, but Damon held him fast. When he spoke, his voice was low and ominous. "I'm the one giving the orders now and here's how things are going to go. You are going to tell us where Jeremy is and then we are going to get him. And if one hair is harmed on his pretty little head, I will send you to a deep dark place and I will have fun doing it. And if you ever insult Bonnie like that again-" Damon stopped and chuckled. "I don't know if the words are invented for what I will do to you. I promise you that!"

Bonnie heard Damon issue many threats since she'd known him. This time was different however. There was something about his stance, the tone of his voice, his overall demeanor – Bonnie could feel that he was one second ripping Russ's throat out.

"Damon, please!" Bonnie pleaded. Damon looked at her and then threw the werewolf down. Russ landed roughly, coughing and sputtering for air. Kevin and Ryan went to his side to make certain he was Ok.

"You should thank the witch. She just saved your life." Damon went to stand besides Bonnie. "Now I am only going to ask this once: where is Jeremy?"

No one spoke for a moment. Ryan and Kevin looked at each other. Russ was still trying to recover from Damon's attack. Finally Ryan spoke.

"He's tied up inside the den."

"Ryan!" Russ gasped with what little voice he had left. Ryan just shrugged his shoulders at Russ.

"I'll go get him." Bonnie said and began he head off to the cave.

"You can't." Kevin called out.

"Be quiet for once!" Russ rasped.

"Shut up, Russ! Your plan isn't worth dying over!" Kevin stated. He turned to Bonnie. "It's a lot bigger in there than it looks and there are all kinds of traps. You'd never make it."

"Then you go get him." Damon ordered.

"I can't. It'll have to be Russ. He's locked in his part of the cave and he is the only one who knows the traps for that area."

"How do you guys navigate the traps when you are in your wolf form?" Bonnie asked.

Ryan shrugged. "I don't know. We just do."

"I've long suspected that we don't lose all of our human intellect during the transformation." Kevin sat up on the ground and tried to sound like the intelligent young man he really was. "I believe what actually happens is more akin to have split personalities. When we are in our wolf form, while our intellect is obviously diminished we can still access some of our basic human knowledge."

"Enough with the science lesson, Einstein." Damon snapped. He looked at Russ. "You have two minutes to go get Jeremy and bring him out here. If you aren't out by then, I'll kill one of your friends. Two minutes after that I'll kill another one. If you still aren't out after that, I'll bury you in that cave. Am I clear?"

Russ didn't say anything. He simply rose and walked into the cave. Bonnie took the opportunity to address two remaining werewolves.

"I didn't mean to transform your friends." Bonnie said. Kevin and Ryan looked at her. "It was an accident and I am very sorry." Bonnie reached out a hand to help them up, but Damon quickly grabbed her hand and put it back to her side. When she looked at him skeptically he just slowly shook his head no. Bonnie turned back to Ryan and Kevin. "Once Jeremy is free, I promise to change them back."

"Really?" Ryan asked hopefully.

"Really." Bonnie confirmed.

"Do you hear that?" Damon interrupted.

"Hear what?" Bonnie asked looking around.

"I know you're here." Damon called out. "I can hear you, so you might as well come out."

"Damon?" Ric asked as he approached the group. Tim and Mason followed him. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you all the same question." Bonnie said.

"We're following you!" Mason answered. "Why did you run off like that?"

"I got a text from Jeremy's kidnappers."

"And you decided to confront them on your own?" Ric asked incredulously. "Bonnie you don't know how incredibly stupid that is!"

"It's not like I'm helpless!" Bonnie defended herself.

"Yes, we know you're the Millennium Witch. It doesn't mean you're invincible!" Tim stated.

"You're the Millennium Witch?" Kevin asked in awe. "That is so awesome!" All eyes turned to face him.

"Who is this?" Mason asked.

"One of Jeremy's kidnappers." Damon answered. "And apparently the president of the Bonnie Bennett fan club. It's a long story."

"Summarize it for us." Tim requested. Bonnie gave the synopsis of what happened starting with the initial text from the werewolves.

"So where is Jeremy?" Ric asked.

"He's in the batcave over there." Damon answered gesturing towards the entrance. "One of the three stooges went to get him." He looked at his watch. "He should be out soon, if not I'll kill one his friends." Damon looked at the two werewolves. "Probably the fat one."

Suddenly Mason cried out in anguish and fell the ground. He covered his ears as he wailed in pain. Ryan and Kevin were also writhing in agony in the ground.

"Mason!" Bonnie cried, rushing to his side. "Are you alright?"

"You guys didn't hear that?" Mason asked as Bonnie helped him to his feet.

"I'm guessing it was werewolf specific as it affected Kevin and Russ as well." Tim stated.

"But what did it mean?" Ric asked.

"You'll soon find out." Russ announced. He was by the entrance of the cave.

"Russ, what did you do?" Ryan asked from the ground where he was recovering.

"Am I going to have to kick your ass again?" Damon asked.

"It's time your got your asked kick, vampire! And I know just how to do it."

"Where's Jeremy?" Bonnie demanded.

"Did you think I was just going to turn him over to you and your vampire friends, bitch?" Russ laughed. "Thank God you're pretty because you sure aren't smart!"

"Russ, tell me you didn't do what I think you did." Kevin pleaded as he sat up.

"I did what had to be done." Russ asserted.

"What's he talking about?" Damon asked.

""Carmen and Diego -they were in the cave." Kevin explained. "He must have freed them."

"What?" Damon questioned.

"It makes sense." Bonnie stated as the realization hit her. "How else could I use the Moonstone to change them back unless they are here?"

"I imagine they're made as a wet hen after being caged." Tim surmised.

"Yeah, being caged doesn't put us in the best of moods." Mason confirmed.

"Alright everyone, get ready for to deal with two pissed off werewolves." Ric stated as move cocked the barrel of his rifle.

"Damon, maybe you should take off," Bonnie suggested. "You're going to be in the most danger."

Damon stared at her for a second. That she cared about his welfare wasn't lost him. He smiled softly at her. "No way, Bon Bon. I'm in this for the long haul."

"We'll see if you feel the same way after Carmen and Diego rip your throat out." Russ chuckled.

"Ripping a throat out is a good idea. Let's start with yours!" Damon roared as he charged Russ. Damon leapt in the air to pounce on the red headed werewolf. Russ instinctively dropped to the ground to avoid his attacker. He needed have worried. Werewolf Diego hurtled out of the cave. He met Damon in the air, slamming into the vampire and knocked him to the ground. Wolf Diego was sent sprawling the opposite direction Damon.

Carmen was right on his heels. She rushed the downed vampire, with gaping jaws.

"Damon!" Bonnie cried out. She unleashed a telekinetic blast that prevented the voracious lupine from sinking her canine teeth into Damon legs.

Damon, for his part, recovered quickly. He was back on his feet in the blink of an eye. He gave Bonnie an appreciative nod for the save. He quickly turned his full attention back to the two werewolves. They had regrouped and were approaching the vampire. He was their sole focus. They didn't seem to notice the other were even there.

Russ righted himself and began to run away from the mayhem.

"Stop him!" Bonnie ordered pointing at the running Russ.

"On it!" Tim said and he disappeared. Bonnie assumed he teleported to intercept Russ. She then turned to Russ and Mason. "How do we help Damon?" She looked back at Damon. He had taken to the trees to avoid the werewolves, but they wouldn't be put off. They were at the base of the tree, taking running leaps trying to get at him.

Meanwhile Tim materialized right in front of Russ. The werewolf tried to stop but there wasn't enough time before he bowled into Tim. The two tumbled to the ground. Russ landed on top of Tim.

"Stupid witch!" Russ yelled as he punched Tim in the face. With his superior strength it was all Tim could do to maintain consciousness. Russ reared back to punch Tim again, but the witch disappeared right from underneath Russ.

The werewolf rose and looked around confused. Where did Tim go? Tim reappeared right behind the wolf. He used his powers to give Russ multiple brain aneurisms. Russ fell to the ground in agony. Tim then cast a spell that caused an invisible tether to bind Russ's hands together.

"Who's the stupid one now?" Tim asked as he left the bound wolf on the forest floor. Russ had been moving at super speed so he was pretty far from the group. His head was ringing from the punch so he couldn't teleport back. He began to walk back towards all the commotion.

Back on the other side of the forest, Bonnie and her crew were trying to decide the best way to help Damon.

"We have other problems to worry about." Kevin announced to Bonnie, Mason and Ric.

"Now what?" Mason demanded.

"Aren't you curious about that sound that incapacitated us?" Kevin asked. When Mason looked at him expectantly he continued. "It was an ultrasonic signal audible to only K-9s and wolves. Given that we can hear, on average, 40,000 hertz above that which a human can hear, I designed a signal that would be audible to us, but not normal humans."

"Enough with the geek speak!" Mason snapped. "What did that sound mean?"

"It's a homing signal." Ryan said. "We use it to summon-"

"Tyler." Mason finished the though.

"You mean Tyler's on his way here?" Ric stated. "Oh shit."

"How much time we got?" Ric asked.

"Given the speed he moves, my guess is that he'll be her at any moment." Kevin confirmed their worst case scenario.

"Hold on guys." Mason interrupted the group. He took a few tentative steps and looked around. "He's here." Mason turned and looked at the group. Lightning crashed above, the storm was still threatening to break. The illumination gave Mason a glimpse of a terrifying sight and his eyes widened in horror. Tyler was right behind them, trying to uses the trees to shield his approach.

"SCATTER!" Mason bellowed.

They all moved to comply as Wolf Tyler burst onto the scene. He knocked Kevin to the ground as he charged through, but the rest were able to leap out of the way in time.

Wolf Tyler kept moving until he was at the tree in which Damon using to keep Carmen and Diego at bay. Counting on his super speed and massive size, Wolf Tyler plowed into the tree. Damon was unprepared for the impact and lost his footing. He plummeted towards the three waiting werewolves.

"No!" Bonnie cried out even from the ground where she landing after leaping out of Wolf Tyler's path. She moved her had in a sweeping motion and caught Damon mid air, right before Wolf Tyler could get a hold of him. She flung Damon non-too gently into a bigger tree that was near by. So rough was the toss that his midsection crashed into a branch knocking the wind out of him. He began to slide off of the branch, but recovered quickly. He righted himself and leapt higher as all of the werewolves were now trying to reach him in this tree.

"That hurt!" Damon yelled at Bonnie.

"Sorry!" She called out as Mason helped her up. She hadn't meant to throw him so hard. She just reacted.

"You ok?" Mason asked her. She nodded. She looked around. Ric, Kevin and Ryan were walking her way. She could see Tim heading towards her was well. She looked at her would be kidnappers.

"You two go get Jeremy." Bonnie ordered. "We may have to leave quickly and I'm not going anywhere without him."

"But the traps!" Ryan objected.

"Figure it out!" Bonnie screamed. Kevin actually jumped in surprise and fright before he and Ryan ran off to comply with her orders.

"We gotta help the Damon." Ric said urgently.

"How?" Mason asked. "There is no way we are match for Tyler, let alone Carmen and Diego as well."

"We can't just leave him!" Ric yelled.

"I didn't say we should!" Mason hollered back. Bonnie stepped in between them.

"Guys! Not helping!" She yelled exasperated. She turned to look at the werewolves and Damon. She sighed. "It's a shame I don't have the Moonstone. I could use it to turn Diego and Carmen human. That way we'd only have to deal with Tyler."

"You may not have it, but I do." Mason said reaching into pocket and pulling out the mystical stone.

"Mason! I could kiss you!" Bonnie exclaimed taking the stone.

"I won't stop you." Mason said with a small smile.

"We don't have time for this." Ric interrupted.

"Now I just need Tim to tell me the spell." Bonnie said and she turned to see the witch getting closer.

"It's a fairly simply spell actually as the Moon Stone does all of the work." Tim explained as he walked towards Bonnie and the others. "We just have to focus on regulating the flow of energy." Suddenly the entire group was pointing in his direction and screaming warnings. Tim turned to see Russ barreling his way. Thought his hands were bound by Tim's spell, his legs were free to act. Using his super speed, lowered his shoulder and plowed into Tim's chest. The witch was knocked off his feet and slammed into a nearby tree. He slumped to the ground unconscious.

Russ looked at the group with a sadistic smile on his face. With Tim indisposed the spell the bound his hands was broken. "None of you are getting out of here alive." he declared. That was all he could say before one of Ric's tranquilizer darts stabbed into his neck.

"That's enough out of you, Crazy." Ric stated lowering his gun. He checked his ammo. "Only one tranquilizer left. Gotta make it count."

"Maybe you can shoot it into Carmen or Diego?" Mason suggested. "That'll get one of them out of our hair long enough for us to deal with Tyler."

"Doable." Ric stated as he aimed his gun at Wolf Diego.

"No!" Bonnie said as she pushed his gun down. He looked at her confused. "Shoot the dart into Tyler." Bonnie instructed.

"What? Why?" Ric questioned. "We don't even know that it will slow him down."

"It should be enough." Bonnie replied.

"Enough for what?" Ric asked.

"I am going to use the Moonstone to turn Carmen and Diego back into human form." Bonnie explained.

"But Tim's down. You don't know the spell." Mason objected.

"I can do this. I know I can." Bonnie said with so much confidence she surprised herself. There was something about what Tim said before Russ took him out: let the moonstone do all the work. Her focus would be controlling the energy flow so the Moonstone doesn't suck the life out of her. She took a couple of steps towards the three werewolves who were still holding Damon captive in the tree.

"You ready?" she asked Ric.

"Let's do this." Ric said. He aimed his rifle at Wolf Tyler. "Just say when."

Bonnie took a few more steps forward. She lifted the stone in the air. Sunlight triggered the first transformation so she was fairly certain Moonlight would reverse the spell. She looked the sky. It was still dark with pregnant thunder clouds.

"Come on!" She quietly urged the clouds to break and let the moonlight through. "I just need on ray of light!"

Then it happened. The clouds opened up just slightly. Bonnie wasn't sure if God was listening at the moment or if her powers somehow caused the clouds to move. She also didn't care; she was just grateful it happened.

"Now!" she yelled to Ric. Taking carful aim, he fired his last tranquilizer dart into the hind of Wolf Tyler. The beast yelped in pain. He turned and surveyed the situation. Sensing Ric as a credible threat, Tyler growled and charged at the history teacher. Only Mason's supernatural speed kept Ric from becoming a victim of Tyler's voracious jaws.

"Take cover! I'll try to distract him!" Mason ordered.

Meanwhile, Wolf Diego and Wolf Carmen maintained their interest in Damon. Their constant vigil prevented the vampire from descending from the tree.

Bonnie felt the moonlight hit the moonstone and the Stone came alive. She felt it fighting to take her life essence. She struggled to maintain her life. The effort dropped her to her knees. Bonnie focused. She refused to be weak again. Bonnie centered her powers within herself and concentrated on controlling the moonstone. She felt stone resisting her. She exerted more power and brought the stone under subjection. It felt like it took hours.

In reality it took less than 5 seconds.

Bonnie rose to her feet and walked towards Carmen and Diego. As if sensing her intentions, both werewolves turned to give Bonnie their undivided attention. They charged.

"Bonnie! Watch out!" Damon cried. The warning fell on deaf ears. Bonnie was too focused on maintaining control over the Moonstone. Damon descended the tree as fast as he could, rushing to Bonnie's aid.

Bonnie felt the Stone yearning to discharge its energies. It wanted to use her as a conduit to release all of the potential locked inside. Bonnie was determined to let it happen. However instead of a chaotic explosion like at the theme park, it would be measured and regulated under her control.

She had only a split second to react. Wolf Carmen and Diego were almost upon her. Trusting her instincts she released the energy at the two stampeding werewolves. Bolts of black energy shot from the stone. Bonnie cried out in pain. Now the energy was free, it was harder to moderate the flow and prevent the Stone from draining her dry. The energy hit the wolves just as they leapt in the air to tackle her. Diego slammed into her, knocking her to the ground as Carmen sailed over them.

The Moonstone flew from her hand, but she didn't care. She struggled frantically, trying to get the beast off of her before he could do serious harm. She shouldn't have been so concerned. Diego wasn't trying to bite her however. That would have been impossible as he was in the process of mutating back into a human. Bonnie had never seen the transformation process before and now she had the opportunity to see it up close and personal. It wasn't a pretty sight and seemed very painful.

Suddenly Damon was above her. He effortlessly tossed Diego aside and scooped her up in his arms.

"Bonnie! Are you already?" he exclaimed.

"I'm fine." Bonnie said, even as she clung to his chest. She continued to watch Diego and Carmen morph back into humans. "I'm fine." She repeated absently.

"What the hell were you thinking!" Damon yelled. "You could have been killed."

"But I wasn't." Bonnie replied. "Put me down, please." Damon complied, but kept his arms around her. "Look." Bonnie said, pointing at Diego and Carmen. "It worked!"

Diego and Carmen both lay on the ground, sweating, naked and human. Bonnie couldn't tell if they were unconsciousness or not.

"Come on." Bonnie said as she moved toward the siblings. "We have to help them."

Damon didn't walk with her. "I think you are forgetting about something, Bonnie." She turned to face him to see what he meant. He pointed in the distance at Wolf Tyler and Mason who were parrying with one another. "We still have the main event to deal with."

"Oh shit." Bonnie said. "Damon, help me find the moonstone. Maybe I can transform Tyler too." She began to look around for the fallen stone.

"Do you really think it will be that easy?" Damon asked.

"Less talk and more looking." Bonnie ordered.

Suddenly they heard Mason cry out. Wolf Tyler had knocked him to the ground and was standing over him. Ric ran up and use the butt of his gun club Tyler in the head. The wolf leapt forward, catching Ric by the pants leg. He shook his head viciously before tossing him aside.

"We don't have time for find the stone!" Damon announced. He spotted the enchanted chain, scooped it up and raced towards Wolf Tyler. Using it as a whip, he cracked it into Wolf Tyler's side drawing blood. The beast yelled in pain. Tyler snarled and then charged Damon.

"Bonnie!" Damon called out. He would need her help for what he was planning. Instead of running away, Damon ran at Tyler. He had to time this perfectly. While he was running, he formed a loop at the end of the chain.

"NOW!" he yelled to Bonnie. When he was 10 feet in front of Tyler, he leapt in the air and somersaulted over the werewolf. He let the loop hang low while he was in the air. Bonnie used her powers to guide the chain and it fastened securely around Tyler's neck.

Damon landed behind the wolf and Tyler bucked wildly, trying to get the chain off.

"What do I do?" Damon as he struggled to hold on to the chain.

"Assert your will!" Bonnie instructed him as she ran towards the pair. "Get him to do what you want him to do."

"Ok, sit!" Damon yelled at Tyler. The giant werewolf continued to thrash around trying to free himself. "Heel!" Damon yelled. Nothing happened. "It's not working!" Damon snapped at Bonnie.

"Try something simpler!" Bonnie ordered.

"Like what?" Damon asked.

"Like what you really what him to do." Bonnie said as she got what she deemed close enough. Ric and Mason were heading towards her. Ric was limping from the bite to his leg from Tyler. They were carrying Tim in between them.

"What I really want is for him to calm down!" Damon yelled. Instantly Tyler ceased all activity. The great beast stopped thrashing and simply looked Damon.

"I can't believe that actually worked." Mason stated in awe.

"Now what?" Damon asked. He looked at Wolf Tyler. Although he was being obedient, Damon knew the beast wanted nothing more then to render him limb from limb. "Lie down." Damon ordered the werewolf and Tyler complied.

"Let's get the others and hightail it back to Mystic Falls tonight." Ric answered. "We got what we came to Abingdon for."

"First we get Jeremy." Bonnie said as she began to walk towards the entrance of the cave. "Kevin and Ryan should have been back with him by now."

Mason shifted all of Tim's weight to Ric. "I'll help you look." He said as he followed Bonnie towards the cave. They didn't get too far before Mason stopped her by gently grabbing her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie asked.

"I hear something." Mason explained. "Someone's coming out of the cave. They watched the entrance of the cave. Nothing happened at first and then Kevin appeared. He was bleeding slightly from his forehead. Seconds later Ryan appeared. He was carrying an unconscious Jeremy over his shoulder.

"What took you guys so long?" Bonnie asked as she ran to meet them at the mouth of the cave.

"I told you there were traps." Kevin answered. He raised his hand to wipe the blood that was trickling down his head. "Some of them were very dangerous and hard to avoid."

"Is Jeremy alright?" Bonnie asked. Ryan laid him down on the ground and Bonnie was kneeling next to him."

"He's fine." Ryan confirmed. "One of Russ's traps involved sleeping gas. Jeremy doesn't have our accelerated healing so he is knocked out from that."

"Sleeping gas?" Mason echoed. He looked further into the cave. "What the hell do you all have back there?"

"You don't wanna know." Kevin said quickly.

"Now that the gangs all here can we get going?" Ric asked as he approached the group with Tim in his arms. He struggled to walk on his hurt leg.

"Wait!" Kevin exclaimed. "Before you go I have so many questions. Like who are all of you? How did you subdue Tyler and why is he a werewolf all of the time? How long have you-"

"Whoa – slow down there!" Bonnie said standing to face Kevin. "We don't have time to answer all of your questions right now."

"You have less time than you think." A voice said from behind them. They all turned to find Malachi and several of his vampire minions.

"YOU!" Kevin stated as he backed into the cave.

"You remembered me - I'm flattered." Malachi stated with false nicety.

Bonnie, who is this ass hat?" Damon called from where he stood with Wolf Tyler still on the chain. The werewolf stood as well and was growling loudly. He was mirroring Damon's feelings.

Malachi turned to face Damon. "You must be Damon Salvatore. It's a pleasure to meet you." Instantly the vampire was at Damon side. Impossibly, he punched his hand through Damon's chest. Before the Salvatore could even cry out in pain, Malachi hurl his body at the others by the cave and latched on to the chain bound Tyler.

"Damon!" Bonnie cried as he landed in front of them. He was coughing up blood and gasping for air.

"Is he still alive?" Ric asked? He'd lain Tyler down and was at Damon's side with Bonnie.

"I think so." Bonnie said as Damon continued to sputter blood. "He missed his heart."

"It wasn't my intent to kill him." Malachi replied as though Bonnie insulted him. "I delegate grunt like that to my associates."

"What do you want?" Bonnie demanded.

"Oh Miss Bennett – you've already given me so much." Malachi replied. "I mean, you were kind enough to capture Tyler and hand him over. Not only that, but you gave me the Moonstone as well." The vampire stated holding up the arcane gem. "What more could I ask for?"

Mason turned to Bonnie. "How did he-"

"It was knocked out of my hand when I transformed the other two." Bonnie cut him off to explain. "I looked for it, but he must have found it first."

"Now that you have what came for, why don't you just get out of here?" Ryan demanded.

"He's not going anywhere with Tyler!" Mason announced. He started to advance toward, but Bonnie put out a restraining hand. She knew what Malachi was capable of, even if Mason seemed to have forgotten.

"Don't presume to command me, animal!" Malachi snapped. It was shocking. That was the first time the gang had ever seen him lose his cool.

"What's going on?" Russ asked and he rose from the ground. Ric's tranquilizer dart had worn off and he was waking up. His timing couldn't have been worse.

"Hello Russ." Malachi stated smiling at the dazed werewolf.

Russ blanched. Malachi was here! This can't be good.

"I'm so glad you've awoken. I've been looking for way to test Bonnie's handiwork. I know she is the millennial witch, but one can never be too cautious."

With that Malachi lurched forward with Tyler. At his command Tyler savagely attached Russ. The gang all cried out in horror. The wanted to help, but they all knew they would never make it past the 10 vampires to get to Russ in time for it to mean anything.

Tyler brutally ripped Russ apart. Malachi watched from closed range with sadistic glee in his eyes. One Tyler finished, he turned to face Bonnie with admiration.

"I must admit, you do nice work." he complimented her. "This chain is quite useful."

"Go to hell!" Bonnie bit out.

Malachi smiled. "Perhaps one day, but not today. I do have to leave however." Malachi said with fake regret in his voice. "I'm afraid this is goodbye." Malachi looked at the 10 other vampires he bought with him. "Kill them." he instructed simply. "If any of them survive the night your lives are forfeit."

He then turned to Tyler. "It's time for us to go. Do try and keep up." With blinding speed, Malachi left the area with Tyler.

'_This__is__going__to__be__a__slaughter_!' Bonnie thought to herself. She and the rest of the crew began to back up as the Malachi's minions strategically approached them. Bonnie took a quick look at her companions. Damon was down and Ric wounded. Mason should be able to fight, but she didn't know about Ryan or Kevin. They both seem scared to death of Malachi and were now devastated at the loss of Russ.

A desperate thought hit her. Perhaps they didn't have to fight.

She sent a telekinetic waive the all of the vampires knocking them all back a few feet. "Everyone in the cave!" Bonnie ordered. Mason hefted Damon over his shoulder and ran into the cave while Kevin helped Ric get Tim inside. Ryan grabbed the still unconscious Jeremy while on his retreat further in the cave. Since they were already at the opening of the crevasse, it didn't take long for them to scurry in. Once they were through the door Bonnie cast a barrier spell.

One of the vampire tried to follow using his super speed. He bounced off of the invisible barrier, landing 10 feet away with a loud thud.

"What is this?" another of the vampires asked as he placed his hand on the barrier.

"It called magic, dummy!" Bonnie sneered from safely in the cave.

"You think this will stop us?" the vampire asked. With a nod to the other vampires they all appeared at his side and began to pound on the barrier.

Ric hobbled to Bonnie's side. "Can they break through?" he asked her quietly.

"No," Bonnie confirmed shaking her head. "They don't have enough power." Ric stumbled and lost his balance. He leaned on Bonnie for support. "You're leg is really hurt. You should get off of it." Bonnie advised.

"I'm fine." Ric dismissed her concern.

Bonnie didn't believe him, be decided to move on anyway. She looked at the others in the cave. Ryan and Kevin were leaning against the wall of the cave, not speaking. Bonnie suspected they were in some state of shock after the night's events. Jeremy was still out and Mason sat down next to a convalescing Damon. From where she stood at the mouth of the cave watching the vampires pound futilely on her barrier, she couldn't tell how her injured cohort was doing.

"How's Damon?" Bonnie called out.

"Well, he's alive." Mason answered. He moved to join Bonnie and Ric. "Barely, though. This was will be a painful recovery. I don't think me moving him didn't help matters." Mason added. He looked at the vampires pounding away. "What's our game plan?"

"I don't know." Ric answered. "Maybe there's another way out of this cave that one of them can tell us about." He pointed at Kevin and Ryan.

"I don't know. They said they have some crazy traps in here." Mason replied. "Bonnie, what do you think?"

"I think you both are over thinking this." Bonnie said. She walked closer to her barrier to address the vampires. They stopped long enough to hear her out. "You guys have lost and don't even know it." Bonnie began with a smirk on her face. "We don't have to fight you to win this battle. We just have to wait you out. Soon the sun will be up and you'll be force to leave here or be burned alive."

"Didn't your master say he was going to kill you all if just one of us survives?" Mason asked. "Just imagine how pissed he is going to be when he learns we all survived the night."

"Your only option is to get out of town." Ric added. "If I were you I'd get a head start by taking off right now."

"Do you think we scare that easily, meat?" a vampire asked. "We are not worried because you will not survive the night!"

"Well, you can't break down the barrier to come get us." Bonnie said resolutely.

"We don't have to." The vampire said sadistically. "You are going to come out to us."

"And why would we so something as stupid as that?" Ric asked.

"I'll show you why." The vampire replied. He bolted away quickly and returned just as fast. When he came back, however, he wasn't alone. He had the unconscious Carmen in his grasp.

"You'll come out or we'll snap kill this bitch." The vampire said holding Carmen by the neck.

Seeing that sight ignited a fire within Mason, Kevin and Russ. The three werewolves rushed the toward the barrier shouting obscenities.

"Let her go!" Mason growled. Bonnie threw herself in his path to prevent him from exiting the cave. He tossed her aside. She could see Kevin and Ryan approaching as well. She quickly focused on the barrier and changed the spell so that it wouldn't only keep vampires out, but keep werewolves in as well.

"What's wrong with you guys!" Bonnie yelled. As the three lupines bounced against the barrier.

"It's instinctive pack mentality." The vampire replied. "They see one of their own in trouble and they have to help. Especially if the trouble is caused by a vampire. They can't help really – they're animals driven by their primal desires."

Ric chuckled. "You're not the palest vampire on the block, are you? Right now, you just have Carmen. If we come out, you'll have us as well. What incentive do we have to come out there?"

"You may not care, Meat, but clearly the animal does." The vampire taunted. "Surely you are not just going to let us kill one of your own."

Mason wanted to rip his throat out. He again started to approach the barrier and Bonnie moved to stop him. She didn't want to have to explain that she cast a spell to prevent him from leaving. Mason was so enraged that he effortlessly Bonnie to the ground.

"Hey!" Ric yell as he hobbled to Bonnie side. He crashed on the ground next to her.

"I'm fine, but do you see you're acting crazy, Mason!" Bonnie yelled. "You have to calm down!"

"I'm sorry Bonnie." Mason apologized. "I'm getting away from these from these assholes." Mason stated. He walked away from the front of the cave with Kevin and Russ in tow.

"Are you ok, Ric?" Bonnie asked him. He was pale and sweating.

"I'm fine." Ric stated, but he couldn't stand on his own.

"No, you're not." Bonnie said wiping sweat from his forehead. "You've lost a lot of blood from the bite in your leg."

"Hey, look at the plus side. I'm not a vampire so at least it's not fatal to me."

"It will be if it gets infected. She took off her tank top and wrapped it around the bite in his leg.

"Put your shirt back on!" Ric ordered. "You're my student. I don't think it's appropriate for me to see you in your underwear." Ric stated. Bonnie gave him a quizzical look and wondered if he was delusional. Her reply was simple however.

"Shut up."

"You're pathetic!" the vampire yelled at Mason. He dropped Carmen carelessly let Carmen's unconscious body fall to the ground. He turned his back on the cave.

A desperate idea struck Bonnie. Carmen was so close! Just on the other side of the barrier! If she could grab her, maybe she could pull her in to safety. Cautiously, Bonnie reached out and grabbed Carmen's wrist. Once she had it she began to pull Carmen through the barrier. Suddenly the vampire had her by the wrist.

"Gotcha!" He yelled. In one fluid motion he threw her from the cave. Bonnie flew through the air and landed hard.

"Bonnie!" Ric yelled.

"No Ric!" Bonnie yelled. "Stay in there!"

"What's going on?" Mason stated as he got to back to the front of the cave. He saw Bonnie out there and went nuts. "Bonnie!" he yelled. He tried to exit the cave after her but bounced off of the barrier. "What the hell is this!" Mason questioned as he put his hands flat against the barrier.

"Both of you stay there!" Bonnie said standing. "I'll be back in there in a minute."

"You're not going anywhere." The vampire who threw her out of the cave informed her.

"Oh really?" Bonnie asked with a raised eyebrow. "Who's going to stop me?"

"We are." he stated. Bonnie was suddenly surrounded by all 10 vampires.

"Let's see what you got." Bonnie said. She envisioned a wave of telekinetic force pulsating from her body and tapped into her powers which caused that to happen. All 10 vampires were simultaneously thrown backwards.

"Damn." Mason whispered impressed at her powers.

Bonnie began to run furiously to the cave. Without warning one of the vampires was in front of her. Using her powers Bonnie tossed him aside.

"Behind you!" Mason cried urgently.

Bonnie turned and used her powers again to toss another vampire. The rushed her from all sides and Bonnie repelled each and every one of them. It was like watching bumper cars. They approached time and time again and in each instance Bonnie shot them away.

With a signal to the other they stopped charging Bonnie and surrounded her.

"I am impress, witch. You're more powerful than I thought."

"So you give up now?" Bonnie asked.

"Hardly. You see, it's still hours from sunrise. We can keep this up forever. Can you?"

"Forever it is then." Bonnie said with false bravado. The truth of the matter is she was tiring fast! She didn't know how many more attacks she could repel. The vampires charged again and again Bonnie pushed them away.

Then suddenly one got through. He punched Bonnie in the face, knocking her to the ground. With her defenses breached the other vampires attached in earnest. She felt one kick her in the back. Suddenly two vampires had her by the arms. Her feet were off of the ground.

The main vampire approach and slap her viciously across the face which caused her nose to bleed. He then licked the blood off of her face.

"Sweet." He said in reference to her blood.

Bonnie could hear Mason and the other crying out to her, begging her to drop the barrier. Her attention was brought back to the vampire when he roughly grabbed her by the face.

"You were a lot of trouble." He said. "I think I deserve a treat for all of my hard work." He bared his fangs to bite Bonnie. However, rather that bite her on the neck, he bit her left breast, right above where her bra ended.

"AHHH!" Bonnie cried out in pain. The vampire stopped and smiled.

"You really are delicious." He said. He used his finger to wipe up blood from the wound and shoved it in her mouth. "Taste it. It's the sweetest blood I've ever had." He looked at Bonnie. "What? No snappy comebacks anymore."

"Fuck you." Bonnie sputtered.

"Not a terrible idea," he said as he trailed his finger between her cleavage. "Maybe I should take you right to the mouth of the cave and have your friends watch as take you."

Thunder cracked overhead again getting everyone's attention. Bonnie used that distraction to free herself from the two vampires and dashed to the cave.

She was almost there and then the vampire was on her again. He had her by the neck and slammed her against the rocks.

Bonnie extended her hand. She was almost through the opening. If she could just get her hand inside, maybe the others could pull her free.

"You're so close." He taunted her. "And yet, not closed enough." He leaned in close . "Any last words?" He asked. He bit her ear just to mess with her.

Suddenly the heavens opened up and the storm that had been threatening to break arrived. It wasn't just a drizzle or a rain shower. This was a full thunderstorm, drenching them all in seconds.

"Yeah," Bonnie said breathlessly. "BURN!"

Using her powers, Bonnie turned the water on the vampire to fire. He let her go, and he floundered around in agony. The other vampires watched in shocked horror, the fire burned him alive in seconds.

Bonnie wasn't done there. She turned to face the rest of her attackers. Simultaneously the all started on fire. Some tried to run away.

"You don't get away that easy!" Bonnie declared. Before the rain could even hit the ground Bonnie was turning it to fire. Fire literally rained from the skies for a 5 mile radius. All for vampires were engulfed in the inferno. Bonnie ignored their chilling moans as they burned to death.

"Bonnie!" Mason cried out. "Stop it! They're all dead! You'll bring down the whole forest!"

Realizing he was right, Bonnie stopped her assault. Some trees and shrubs had already caught fire due to her magic. She hoped the rain would put it out. She looked at the cave and undid the barrier spell.

She walked in with her hand on her head, exhausted from the extreme use of her powers.

"Come on. Let's go home." She said before promptly passing out in Mason's arms.

END CHAPTER

So there you have the very long chapter 4! I hope you enjoyed it! Please write a review and let me know what you thought of it!

Next up: Secrets are revealed and surprising alliances are made! I promise it won't be so long between updates in the future!


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